


My Silly Cowboy

by MagicalPoolNoodle



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-19
Updated: 2017-05-16
Packaged: 2018-10-07 13:59:07
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 27
Words: 42,615
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10362006
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MagicalPoolNoodle/pseuds/MagicalPoolNoodle
Summary: Hanzo is sent on a mission for Overwatch and ends up in more trouble than he can handle.A fic conversion of an on going McHanzo roleplay. From chapter 25 on, it's no longer from the roleplay. I will be continuing the story on my own using the combined ideas we have for the direction.Yes, there are noodle dragons. Who doesn't love noodle dragons?(If you spot errors, let me know. I couldn't find a beta to run fresh eyes over it! The chapters will be all sorts of different lengths, I'm just going with it.)(Permission from my RP partner to convert and post this was given!)(https://www.tumblr.com/blog/magicalpoolnoodle <- My Tumblr and https://the-mcfrickening.tumblr.com/ who plays Jesse!)If you like it, please leave me a comment. It helps me stay motivated to write, knowing what people think of it!





	1. Chapter 1

Waking up in an almost pitch black room with no memory of how he got here was not something on Hanzo’s to-do list. Unfortunately, that seemed to be the case. He was on a chair and any attempt to move his arms or legs to a more comfortable position failed thanks to metal cuffs around his wrists and ankles. The room was painfully quiet, no outside noises and the air was slightly stale and smelled like dust. The metal clinked against the metal of the chair as he tested the strength of the bonds, there was no way he’d be able to break them.

His head pounded as he tried to piece together what had happened but his memories from the day were vague at best. He had been doing jobs for and alongside Overwatch in the last several months. Despite Genji’s presence he had started to enjoy being around some of the members. The quieter ones. He avoided the louder, obnoxious few as often as possible. They did nothing for his calm.

It seemed this mission had gone wrong and he had no way to call for help. The distant sound of footsteps caught his attention and he listened intently as they stopped outside the door. Letting himself slump in the chair, Hanzo feigned that he was still unconscious as the tumblers fell into place and the heavy booted figure strode into the room. Calm and collected, male, by the sound of their breathing. His jaw was gripped and his head tilted upward before it was released once again. Without a word, the man left the room and slammed the door behind him, the tumblers clicking as the door was locked.

The next several days bled together, time had no meaning in a dark room. Although, it quickly became obvious that his captors were members of Talon. Especially when familiar faces had been driving hot needles under his nails, slicing at his flesh with sharp blades and slamming their fists into his body. Despite the agony, one thing stood out to the archer. They never spoke a word to him, nor did they attempt to extract any information from him. None of his questions or demands were answered, but at least they’d given him water.

In the times when he was alone, he’d been wracking his mind to try and figure out a way to escape and also figure out why Talon had captured him and kept him alive. If they wanted to kill him, they could have done that already, several times over in fact. More so, the fact they hadn’t tried to extract information from him about anything meant one thing. That this was a trap, and he had no way to warn Overwatch about it.

Of course, Hanzo being Hanzo, part of him was sure he deserved this fate. That dark cloud of depression that constantly loomed over him since that day many years ago back home in Hanamura. Frowning in the darkness, he shook the thoughts aside with a grunt. Right now, his focus was on escaping. He was exhausted, filthy, starving and in more physical pain than he had been for a long, long time. He wasn’t going to give up, stubbornness ran in the family.

A sound behind him startled him and he twisted, trying to see what it was. Something bumped against his hands and slithered up his left arm, something scaly. Said slithery creature flopped onto his lap and Hanzo didn’t need light to know what it was and a wave of relief flooded him.

“It took you long enough,” his voice was raspy and hoarse as he spoke to the spirit dragon who rolled over, probably expecting a belly scratch. “Help me out of here, I cannot do it alone.”

As expected, his request was met with a dramatic whine before the dragon left his lap. It only took a few minutes for both the cuffs on his wrists and ankles to clatter to the cement floor. Swinging his arms forward, Hanzo grimaced as his shoulders burned painfully and the dragon once again flopped onto his lap, belly up. The archer chuckled and rubbed said exposed belly for a moment, letting the dragon move to his shoulders before he pushed himself to his feet.

His legs were stiff and sore and his knees screamed in pain, they’d been assaulted along with the rest of him and slowly he hobbled across the room to the door. He grasped the handle and tested it, just in case they’d been stupid enough to leave it unlocked. Of course not, so again the dragon made short work of the locked door and Hanzo cautiously stepped out into the hallway. It was dark out here too, which meant it was night. The only light was at the end of the hallway which illuminated a set of stairs which the archer hurried toward the best he could on bruised knees.

He would get out of here. He had to.


	2. Chapter 2

Jesse McCree, obnoxiously loud extraordinaire, never thought he’d come to fear the loss of someone he saw as no more than an acquaintance. That was, until said acquaintance was gone. When he didn’t come back on time, in fact he was two days late. It was clear something had gone wrong and the entire base felt a whole lot emptier. Genji had taken the news quite poorly which set off a chain reaction for everybody else. Nobody had seen the cyborg so at end about his own brother before, save for Zenyatta for other reasons. Then again, Hanzo hadn’t gotten himself into this kind of mess before.

The day’s events had left everyone with dampened spirits and as for Jesse, he was… he didn’t know what he was, but it was far from good considering the amount of times he’d glanced at Hanzo’s door when he passed by. As each day passed, things looked worse and worse. On the end of the fourth day, Winston had finally managed to track his location and it seemed he wasn’t being transported any time soon.

By noon on the sixth day,everyone was brought in for a meeting and the rescue team was chosen; Jesse, Lena, Wilhelm, Genji, Mercy and of course, Jack. The floor plans were distributed, routes and roles were established. Those not involved wished their team mates good luck and left the rescue team to go through a basic run through. They were to hit the base tomorrow night and that yes, it was Talon’s doing. The mission the older Shimada had been sent on had nothing to do with Talon at all, but from what they’d discerned, the original target had tipped them off. He’d known they were coming.

“Fuckin’ Talon. Should’a known.” McCree grumbled to himself quietly. Although, not quiet enough. Jack had fixed him with a glare and told him to shut up.

For the next day and a half Jesse had been pacing up and down hallways, in his own room, the kitchen, outside, absolutely everywhere. He’d even run out of cigars at some point, having smoked one too many in the past few days. It was clear the Jesse was uneasy and nervous about the rescue; but who wasn’t? Everyone had become so used to Hanzo - he was one of them now, and having him taken so suddenly felt like they’d lost a family member.

In Jesse’s case though, it was more like a sack of bricks being tossed full-force at his head by Winston, or maybe Reinhardt that had successfully hit. The archer and gunslinger’s bickering and inability to see eye-to-eye wasn’t the greatest and they definitely needed to work on that, but the cowboy was beginning to think he might actually be missing Hanzo’s company. Even if it hadn’t quite been a week and all they ever seemed to do was argue or purposely try to piss each other off.

Now wasn’t the time to be sentimental. The transport had just touched down under the cover of darkness and Jack was already barking overs through the comms, demanding they get into position. McCree, having been acting as if Hanzo’s disappearance hadn’t affected him in the slightest (even though it was painfully obvious), was the third to take position, awaiting Genji’s signal.

Seconds dragged into minutes, yet those minutes felt like hours under a dark, cloudy sky. The chance of rain was high and that was part of the reason they’d waited for tonight. Although, something wasn’t right. It was suspiciously quiet and even with his surroundings illuminated by oddly placed spotlights Jesse couldn’t see a living being from where he waited, crouched behind a concrete divider.

They’d been banking on there being less personnel at such a late time, especially since the latest intel showed that this facility was barely staffed, although right now it seemed downright deserted. Something that was completely unexpected. Genji gave the signal for them to move after a few more minutes of waiting, just to ensure there really wasn’t anyone out here on patrol.

“Somethin’s up.” Lena’s voice came over the comms as Jesse snuck out from behind the concrete divider, heading toward the back entrance.

“Ya’ don’t sa-”

“That just gives us all the more reason to _stay focused_.” Jack tuned in with a nasty growl, shutting both Lena and Jesse up.

He was right, if this was more than it seemed then they had to be ready. Tracer and Genji had already begun surveying the area while Reinhardt took up a new position near the front entrance for inception purposes. Jack had joined Jesse in heading toward the back entrance, the cowboy was the one going in and out, hopefully unnoticed. It wasn’t safe to send in more than one person in and McCree was more than capable of taking care of himself.

Genji may have been the better choice, but he’d insisted the gunslinger go in his stead. Jesse was sure it had something to do with the younger Shimada not wanting to show how worried Hanzo was, along with the fact the archer still held a lot of bitterness and animosity toward his younger sibling. Hell, Jesse didn’t want Hanzo to see how worried he was, but he had no choice.

“You’re going to be on your own down there.”

Jack’s voice tore Jesse from his thoughts and he flashed the soldier a broad grin. “What, ya’ worried ‘bout me? Well, ain’t that a first?”

“Shut it.” Jack snapped in response, sighing in irritation. “Look, I don’t want to lose two perfectly capable soldiers, so don’t fuck it up. Got it?”

Jesse’s eyebrow climbed high up his forehead but it took him little time to respond, his hat already being tipped as the terminal beeped and the doors slid open. “Aye aye, Cap’n. I won’t let ya’ down.” Peacekeeper in hand, the cowboy made his way into the compound, red serape billowing behind him.


	3. Chapter 3

When the twin dragon had appeared at his side, Hanzo couldn’t say. His focus was on staying upright, ignoring the pain and trying to find his way out before it was too late. Desperation drove him on, he had to escape before Overwatch fell for the trap. Thankfully, most of his major pains were numbed by now his adrenaline and stubbornness helping to push him onward, his clothing hung from his body, shredded and stained with his own blood.

Climbing the stairs had been harder than he’d expected, his knees were obviously more injured than he’d thought. Not that he had stopped to look at himself. No matter, they’d heal over time. The twin dragons skittered around him, dashing ahead, dashing behind and making encouraging sounds at him whilst keeping a look out for any enemies ahead. Not that it seemed there was anyone else in the compound right now. It was painfully quiet, which made him anxious. At least the fresh air was helping to clear his lungs and his head in case he had to fight suddenly. Hanzo would have preferred a weapon, but if he had to rely on his bare hands he would most likely be fine.

“Watatsumi, Mizuchi. Go find my bow.” Since the dragons were closer to tripping him up than being actually helpful, maybe they could find his weapon. Being armed would make things easier.

The twin dragons sped off in different directions, leaving Hanzo to hobble onward alone. Each room he passed he made sure to peek into, just in case. Although, strangely enough, almost every room was bare which led him to believe his theory about this being a trap was correct. Worry drove him on faster through the empty, dully lit halls in an attempt to find an exit. More than once he found himself doubling back to try a different route, this place was like a rabbit warren.

The adrenaline keeping the archer going was wearing off and with it, his pace slowed, the pain returned and his breathing began to labour. He forced himself onward, now relying on the wall to keep himself upright. Although, it wasn’t much longer before his legs began to shake and they gave out, sending him crashing to the ground. Perhaps a short break wouldn’t go astray.

With Athena relaying directions over the comms to Jesse and the occasional input from Winston, the gunslinger had no issue finding and descending the first few flights of stairs. Although, he still hadn’t come across any of the forces he was expecting. In fact, he hadn’t even found any signs of life to begin with. Most (if not all) of the rooms he poked his head into were barren and upon closer inspection, not a single speck of dust had settled on the concrete floors. It was almost like they’d just packed everything up and disappeared, yet the lights were still on.

“You guys seein’ anythin’ up there?” Jesse spoke into the mic of the comms as he made it to the next flight of stairs, because this? This was just too strange for his liking.

“Not a thing on our end, what about you?” Lena was the first to respond, her words causing Jesse to pause and groan as he reached the bottom step, surveying his surroundings.

“I ain’t seen a single varmint and I’m already on the sixth floor. Place looks like there used to be somethin’ ‘ere, but now there’s nothin’.”

“What?” Wiston cut in on the conversation. “That can’t be right. There were Talon agents located in and around the facility only yesterday.”

“I’m tellin’ ya’, there’s no one ‘ere.”

The earbud fell silent and McCree pressed on, journeying deeper and deeper into the heart of the base. On the eighth floor a flash of movement caught his eye and his first reaction was to raise the Peacemaker. After a proper look, he visibly relaxed as one of Hanzo’s twin spirit dragons lifted itself from ground level to crash happily into his chest. Holstering the gun, the brunette lifted his bionic arm to cradle the critter, chuckling lightly at the happy chirrups the dragon made as it snuggled against his arm.

“Woah there, darlin’, didn’t need ta’ scare me like that.” Something clicked in his head a moment later and his grin faded quickly. “… Where’s Hanzo?” If one of the two dragons was here, then the older ninja had to be close, not to mention awake.


	4. Chapter 4

One of the two dragons had returned to the archer’s side, looking sad. Apparently his bow was nowhere to be found nearby. Perhaps the other one would have better luck. Hanzo knew he couldn’t sit here forever, it wasn’t safe. Even if the place seemed empty, who knew what kind of trap Talon had in store. As he pushed himself to his feet, Hanzo stumbled as he lost his balance, his shoulder colliding with the nearest wall. Now that he’d been forced to stop, his aching muscles were seizing up but he forced himself onward.

The dragon with Jesse had uncoiled from where he snuggled against the man’s bionic arm at the question. With a chirrup, the critter left the cowboy’s arm and headed back the way it came, looking back at the brunette every now and then to ensure he was still following. They weren’t all that far away and soon, Jesse picked up the sound of heavy, slow footsteps and laboured breathing.

Rounding the corner, the whole purpose of the mission came into sight, only several feet away. Hanzo was in terrible shape, his eyes were bruised and swollen and he had several splits on his lips. Bruises marred his face and his clothing had been clearly slashed and ripped, bloodstains on the material in varying shades of crimson. Some older, some newer. He wad struggling to walk as he used the wall to keep himself upright and moving, his features set in grim determination.

“Hanzo?” It took the gunslinger almost no time to plough on over to the shorter man, grabbing his shoulders to support him.

“Jesse?” That red serape had caught his attention before the man had rushed over to him and he inhaled sharply. A mixture of relief and fear washed over him and his voice was ragged and hoarse as he tried to push the cowboy away. “It is a trap, get out! Leave me!”

Those hoarse words had Jesse’s suspicions come to a final conclusion, one that they should have figured out straight away but didn’t. Why else would Talon pack up and abandon a base so quickly, yet leave their captive behind? It all made sense and the cowboy couldn’t believe that after all his time in Blackwatch, he couldn’t figure something so bloody simple out.

Still, he wasn’t going to leave Hanzo on his own down here, especially if it was a trap and the ninja looked like he could collapse at a moment’s notice and there was no way in hell he’d survive alone without that nifty bow of his. The only thing Jesse could do right now was to warn the others and that was exactly what he did, raising his right hand to press a finger to the ear-piece just as Jack’s voice poured in.

The connection was awful, the sound crackling alongside with what sounded an awful lot like shouting and gunshots. “Jesse, you need to find Hanzo and leave thorough the hidden exit we discussed, right now! The back and front entrances have been locked down and Talon has appeared out of no- Reinhardt, be careful with that damn thing!”

“Sorry!” Said man apologised quickly.

McCree was far too preoccupied with what Jack had said, his grip on Hanzo tightening unconsciously. “I’ve just found ‘im, but what about y-”

“Go!” There was a finality in Jack’s tone that had Jesse stopping himself from trying to press further, instead choosing to disable the mic and finally returning his attention to his surroundings.

“We gotta go, darlin’.” Turning to Hanzo, the cowboy took a proper look at him and… seeing the ninja like that, vulnerable, clothes torn, stained with blood and skin dotted with cuts and varying patches of blues and yellows. It made Jesse’s stomach twist. “A’ight, so…” He started, taking a step back and letting the shorter man go. There was no way Hanzo could move quickly and that would pose a problem. McCree whirled around on the heels of his spurred boots and crouched down, patting his lower back. “We’re in a hurry and yer’ in no state to walk. So get on.”

One bruised brow lofted as Jesse turned and crouched, it wasn’t just the pet name that caused that reaction. It was the fact the man expected him to ride piggyback like a child. “I can walk.” He lied stubbornly, his pride taking over in place of common sense. Pushing himself up, he tried to prove his point. “I will be…” His had span and he wavered, falling against the wall how he had earlier. He pushed himself upright after a moment and a heavy sigh of defeat left his swollen lips. “If you breathe even a word of this to anyone Jesse, I will not hesitate to end your life.” He climbed upon Jesse’s back and wrapped his arms around the man’s shoulders. “Do you understand me? Not a soul.” After all, his pride was all he had left right now.

“Not a soul.” McCree replied, glad that he didn’t have to fight the older man over this. “Y’know, yer pretty heavy.” With a low whistle, he hooked his arms under Hanzo’s legs the second he felt weight on his back and shoulders. “Yer’ pretty heavy,” he commented as he pushed himself up and adjusted the man on his back before leaning forward to test how stable he was. Once he was satisfied he headed along the hallway Hanzo had come from at a slow jog. “So ya’ wanna know what’s goin’ on?”

“Maybe you are just weak.” The archer retorted, allowing his head to rest against Jesse’s upper back. His exhaustion was really setting in now.

Jesse simply snorted in response. “Nah, yer’ just packin’ a whole lotta’ raw muscle.” He’s also packing something else… No, now is not the time for dirty jokes, Jesse. Able to feel the archer’s head resting against his back as he made another sharp turn, the cowboy kept an eye out for Hanzo’s bow that was still missing.

He couldn’t see it, but his reply bought a little amused smile to Hanzo’s lips for just a moment. Each room they passed seemed to be as empty as the last, making it seem more like his bow was gone. This wasn’t something the archer was ready to accept, even if it meant coming back once he was healed to find it.

“Aside from this being a trap, I do not know what else has been going on,” he fell quiet, his tone softening for a moment, “how many days was I gone?” It had to have been a few days at the least, since Overwatch had apparently organised a rescue mission.

“Hey now, don’t go fallin’ asleep on me. I know I’m real comfy, but right now it ain’t good.” God knows Hanzo probably needed the rest, but it was a bad idea for him to lose consciousness in the heart of the enemies base, even with McCree and the dragons’ protection.

“I am awake.” The archer doubted he’d be able to sleep like this as it was, every jostle sent pain through him from the countless injures he had. Sleep could wait just a little longer.

“Near a week,” he supplied, “you had us all pretty gosh-darn worried about ya’ too. Lena was blinkin’ all over the place when she first found out. Couldn’t keep ‘er still.” She, alongside Wilhelm had made the biggest ruckus about it and don’t even get him started on the others. “I’d say that ya’ owe ‘em all an apology when we blow this join, but knowin’ you that ain’t gonna happen.” His joke was followed by a relatively forced chuckle, although there was something else present in his voice.

Nearly a week? It felt longer than that, but that was to be expected. The headaches that bordered on migraines had been bad enough alongside the daily torture, the gnawing hunger had come along atop of that. After that, the lethargy on top of his already exhausted state. Hanzo was sure he’d passed out a few times, the whole time had mostly blurred together once starvation mode set in. The archer had been sure he was going to go mad from the combination of everything.

 


	5. Chapter 5

Rather abruptly, the four of them (dragons included) came across a set of stairs alongside an elevator, although McCree would sooner throw himself off a cliff than trust using the latter. “We gotta head through a hidden exit. Sneaky bastards’ve got one somewhere on the tenth floor. Here’s ta’ hopin’ that bow o’ yers pops up sooner rather ‘n later.”

“Do you think you can carry me up these stairs?” Hanzo really wasn’t interested in being dropped, or falling down the stairs with Jesse. That was the last thing he needed. “I can try and walk if you need.” Since taking the elevator would probably end with both of them dead, if it was even still active.

“Course I can. Yer’ not that heavy, an’ my arm can hold a lot more than ya’ think.” His bionic one, that is. Besides, Jesse had no intention on putting Hanzo down because that would be too big of a risk if any agents came running at them. That and he didn’t want to accidentally become separated from Hanzo and wind up losing him in this maze of a compound. Even with Athena’s directions in his ear he’d have trouble figuring out where to go.

Although, it was also a risk having him on his back in the first place. If the dragons happened to overlook someone and Jesse didn’t notice, there was no way he’d be able to get out of the way of gunfire should it ever happen. Not that he didn’t trust the little critters to keep them safe, it’s just… one can’t be too careful. Apparently, he’d just jinxed it.

“Jesse? Jesse! Listen, some of Talon’s forces — on their way towards you. They - where - are - hurry up. We’ll - outside.” Words, barely intelligible and cutting off in odd spots again made their appearance. Although this time, the cowboy couldn’t quite tell who was talking. There was even more of that crackling from before, loud almost to the point of deafening and while the sentences were broken up, he could put together the basics. Some more sounds filtered through after a pause, but the rest was too hard to understand. Athena had stopped talking as well, so that was a very bad sign.

At least he now knew that they needed to speed up before they up up riddled with bullets or whatever else Talon might be packing right about now. Immediately, Jesse took off up the stairs, his hold on Hanzo’s legs tightening so that he didn’t accidentally drop him. “We gotta move. Hanzo, yer’ able to fire a gun at least, right? Take the Peacekeeper and use it, cus’ we’re expectin’ a welcomin’ party.” 

It was easy to forget bionic limbs were stronger when you had none yourself. So, it seemed the trap had been sprung finally. Jesse’s question made him snort, what kind of a question was that? Not that Overwatch had seen him use anything but his bow and fists. “Of course I can,” he replied, lifting his head from it’s (very comfortable) resting place and lowering one hand to pluck the six-shooter from the leather holster. “I cannot promise my aim will be precise, but I will do my best.” The weight of this was different than he was used too, the balance was even and it felt decent in his grip. The main issue he’d have was his swollen eyes and shaking hands whilst being carried. It was a situation he never anticipated he’d ever ben in, yet here he was.

Upon hitting the top of that flight of stairs, the first thing they saw were several armed figures, which led to McCree ducking into the nearest room. The archer almost lost his balance at the sudden sideways movement. There was a keypad to the door, but they didn’t have the code to shut the door and damaging the terminal to force a close would lock them in here. 

“Darn it,” Jesse growled quietly, choosing to lean against the wall to catch his breath. Something in the far corner caught his eye and he set his gaze on it. “Hey, err… that’s yer’ bow, innit?”

Hanzo was in the process of sliding off Jesse’s back to give the cowboy a break when the brunette gestured. Hanzo’s gaze followed to where he was pointing, the dragons were already scooting over to it. No doubt to try and claim they’d been the ones to find it. He held the Peacekeeper out to Jesse, who took it in hand and slid it back into the holster, for now. Even though he hadn’t been without it for long, he felt at ease as it settled back into his hand. 

“It seems we were most fortunate.” Carefully, he limped over to where the weapon and quiver laid. He slung the quiver onto his back as the twin dragons scampered around his legs, yep, trying to take credit. “It will take all of us to get past them. I cannot fire my bow from your back, but I will be fine.” He had no choice and he’d already formulated an idea.

“I have a plan,” he started as he used the bow as a crutch to hobble back over to Jesse, “I do not have the strength to send the full force of the dragons at them, but we can use them as a distraction in their current forms. If all goes according to plan, we should be able to take them down and be gone before backup arrives. From what I managed to see, there were at least eight.” 

Jesse hadn’t had time to count how many were waiting at the door and aside from those, neither of them knew just what they were up against. Although, with the archer back in the game, as injured as he was, Jesse had a feeling they’d make it just fine. After all, the guy’s a damn good shot with that bow. Thrusting a hand into God only knows where, Jesse fished out a cigar and slit it in between his teeth. He wasn’t going to light it in here, it was way too much of a giveaway. He’d wait until later when he could really savour it. In the meantime, he opted to chew on it while he checked to see how many bullets were loaded. All six were present. 

“A bit of a coincidence, if ya’ ask me. Not that I’m complainin’ or anythin’. I just would’ve thought they’d have hidden yer’ bow somewhere.” And they came across it just as they really needed it. He’d almost call that fishy. 

The archer nodded. “I agree, it is too much of a coincidence. Something about this still feels wrong. Is has been far too easy this far and Talon is more than aware the two of us can take down a small group easily.” Hell, if he wasn’t in his current state, he’d probably be able to take them all alone.

Clicking the barrel back into place, McCree chanced a glance at Hanzo, only to return his attention to elsewhere. “A’ight jus’ don’t go fallin’ over. If somethin’ bad happens, I’ll throw one of these babies and we’ll run.” Tapping a metal digit against one of the flash bang grenades attached to his belt, McCree pushed off the cold surface and approached the edge of the open doorway, the thumb of his bionic arm hooking onto his belt and gun resting against his shoulder. “When yer’ ready, send ‘em out and we’ll go on three.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some violence in this chapter, nothing graphic

The dragons and Hanzo joined Jesse at the door, the blue noodles draped loosely around the archer’s neck like a scaly scarf. Untangling themselves, the twin dragons laid in wait nearby as Hanzo slid a scatter arrow from the quiver and (to his shame) had some issues nocking it at first. A small, irate huff slipped from his lips as it finally slipped into place. McCree couldn’t help a small grin at the other’s huff, however he didn’t voice it; now was not the time to rile the Shimada up.

Nodding with his head toward where the group of armed men waited had the dragons dashing out, soon the the quiet sounds of them chatting turned to loud shouting and confusion as the two dragons rushed into the group. Blue streaks zipped and sped around the mercenaries legs, aiming to distract them and knock some down to give the two humans an advantage. Stepping into the hallway, Hanzo pulled the arrow back and took aim.

Jesse had already been ready to start his countdown as Hanzo had stepped from the room. “Aw, c’mon…” Nothing short of a childish pout settling on his face. Why is that nobody wanted to do a countdown with him? Sure, it isn’t exactly the safest thing to do in this sort of situation, but he’s gotta make light of everything somehow, right?

Hanzo’s hands shook more than they did, the pain from his bruised nails made it hard to focus, but he was determined and gritting his teeth he let the arrow fly. As it connected with the top of the left wall above the heads of his targets, it split into multitudes, bouncing toward the men whose confusion turned to pain for some. One man slumped down to the floor, dead as the rest yanked their weapons from their holsters and tried to fire at the blue streaks.

Jesse had followed suit, knowing better than to run in and start shooting while Hanzo let loose one of those special arrows of his. Once it had settled, he threw himself forward, diving between one of the mercs’ legs and letting loose a spray of bullets that were well placed enough to take down a few more of them, killing three as opposed to Hanzo’s one. Yet again, he was tempted to make a common that’d get on the other’s nerves, but… he’ll let it slide in favour of the current situation. Not to mention, riling the archer up at this point in time might end up with a stray arrow stuck in his body somewhere.

Jumping back, the gunslinger narrowly avoided being pummeled in the head by a wildly swinging fist, he bumped into another merc who lost their balance and toppled to the ground while he made short work of reloading. Hanzo in the meantime, had moved to a better vantage point, a frown settling on his lips as McCree took out more of the targets than he had. While the cowboy was reloading, the man that had been wildly swinging took the time to attack the brunette once again. An arrow slammed into his side and he cried out, another following suit through his neck as the older Shimada’s competitiveness kicked in. The mercenary cried out in shock and pain, the sound strangled as he crumpled to the ground, weakly clutching at the second arrow.

One of Jesse’s eyebrows hiked up his forehead at the sight of two arrows piercing the owner of another missed sucker punch and turned his gaze to Hanzo with an undeniably playful grin. Another arrow sped into the fray, a second body falling to the ground and shortly after, a third target fell. Leaving just one very angry mercenary for them to deal with. The dragons had vanished already, apparently they’d decided their work was done for now, the main danger was over.

Raising his gun, McCree took the last one down with a pull of the trigger and a bullet straight through his skull. “Bullseye.” He can’t have the archer beating him in kill count now, can he? Raising the six-shooter, he gave the barrel a blow to disperse any heat and smoke before holstering it once more. “Wanna have a competition? But there’s somethin’ ya’ want. Whoever gets outta ‘ere with the highest kill count, wins.” Because it wasn’t just the archer who was competitive, not to mention the whole situation definitely needs some lightening. “So, whadaya say?”

A flicker of a scowl had just left Hanzo’s face as the taller man turned to face him, he could have taken out that last target… if his aching hands hadn’t been fumbling with the arrow. Putting the arrow away, the bow again became a not-so-good temporary crutch and he limped over to the cowboy who looked way too proud of himself. Although, that challenge had one of his brows lofting and he drew himself to stand upright, his tilting up to meet the cowboy’s gaze with his own determined look (although it probably didn’t have the desired effect, with his eyes all bruised and swollen).

  
What did he want? Honestly, he had no idea. “It is a deal,” the older man nodded, “although, I will have to decide what it is I want when I win. I have something in mind that may have to suffice.” He paused and did a quick tally of their kills, raising his gaze again. “If I am correct, we are both equal. Four kills each. Although,” his eyes narrowed slightly, “what is it you want if you manage to somehow best me?”

Tipping his hat, Jesse was clearly pleased about the other’s agreement if one were to go by his continued grin. “Sure is, four to four.” At Hanzo’s next question, he hesitated, searching in his head for something he might be interested in. “… How ‘bout that fancy hair ribbon ya’ always wear?” Why? Good question. He’s always been curious about it, so why not? It’s not like there’s much else he can take from the older man anyway. Both the Shimada brothers were oh-so-private about everything, even when he was best buddies with the younger one.

He made a show of shrugging, keeping an eye out any incoming danger. “But if it’s important to ya’, I can choose somethin’ else.” He wouldn’t want to take something from the archer if it had some sort of significance, that was just cruel and cruel he was not… at least not to someone he worked with. “I’m warnin’ ya now though, I’m not gonna go down easy.” Raising his bionic limp, Jesse directed a mischievous finger gun at Hanzo and fired it, adding everything from sound effects to recoil.

A lot of Hanzo’s apparently hatred toward Jesse was a side effect of the loud, obnoxious cowboy being friends with that brother of his. Not even Jesse’s wide smile could cause even a ghost of one on Hanzo’s face. He rarely smiled or laughed, let alone joked outside of sarcasm. He was entirely too serious and most of Overwatch was sure he didn’t know how to smile. Hanzo was all in all, a product of his upbringing and especially after the confrontation with Genji back home all those years ago. It was more than obvious the man need to lighten up a whole damn lot. Even once in a while would probably do wonders.

“My ribbon?” He subconsciously touched the yellow dyed silk ribbon that was used to tie his hair up, it was something he’d had for a long time, but was it even important to him? After all, it was easily replaced and he did have others. He wondered what Jesse would even do with it, probably tie it around his ridiculous hat. “It is not important. If you win, you can have it,” pausing, he swore he heard something but everything remained quiet, “I could say your hat, but I would never even wear such a thing.” The serape, even less so, so that was out as well. “Perhaps you can amuse me and show me your skills as a archer.” There was that sound again, maybe it was something outside. “I will not, though, go easy on you, Jesse McCree. Even though I am injured and at a great disadvantage. I will win.”

McCree was a little too invested in their conversation to notice any quiet noises, partially distracted by thoughts of eliciting even a small smile or a laugh from the ninja. Quite happy with Hanzo’s agreement, Jesse hummed. “My hat?” His brow rose high once more in question, chuckling as he tried to picture such a thing. “Now that’d be a sight to behold.” Although, what the archer had settled on for his prize was… interesting. “Ya’ sure ‘bout that? I might jus’ impress ya’.” No, no he wouldn’t. Jesse McCree was one hell of a gunslinger but he was not at all good with bows. The last time he’d ever tried using one was with Genji way back when and that had turned out terribly.

“That will never happen, Jesse.” Hanzo’s retort was a little too quick, the words tinged with a dangerous tone the cowboy would know all too well. The words followed by a derisive scoff at the mere notion that scruffy man even knew how to properly hold a bow, let alone hit a target.

“And nah, it’d be no fair if you did no on me easy darlin’.” Allowing that little nickname to slip, the cowboy opened his mouth to take it back but was interrupted by the sound of something hitting the floor further back down the hall that’d come from. It spurred him into action, already having whipped the Peacekeeper back out to point it into the distance. “It might be about time ta’ go, don’t ya’ think?”

A scowl crossed his features at the pet name and he heaved a sigh, about to snap at McCree but he was interrupted by that sound from behind them. The scowl faded and he nodded, slipping an arrow from the quiver and taking (still) longer than he liked to nock it. “I do believe it is past ‘about time.” Unfortunately for them, he only had two sonic arrows left. The one in the bow and one still in it’s housing.

Looking between the exit and the hall behind them, he made a choice and fired the sonic down the hallway to see how much time they had. The arrow sped down the hall and lodged in the wall, the sonar pulsing outward, showing nothing just yet. They had some time, but probably not very much. “I will cover our flank, you go get the door opened before whoever it coming gets here.”

“Gotcha.” Initiating a mock salute, the cowboy decided against pushing the archer any further today, he’d picked up on that animosity in his words earlier. He could continue to be a pain once they were back home and safe. Jesse took to approaching their penitential escape, only to find it locked with a padlock. Of course it was locked. It would be far too easy if they were able to leave so soon with such a lack of resistance. At least the padlock was on their side. “Bingo,” Jesse muttered, taking one look at it before aiming the six-shooter downward and shielding his eyes from any ricochet.

He took the bait like a rabbit cornered by something it couldn’t see. Had there been any other options and if they weren’t in such a hurry, he’d have considered thinking such an obvious trap over, but instead… Jesse pulled the trigger and a shrill sound of metal shattering flew through the air, the bullet luckily being sent nowhere but into the floor and through the thinner portion of the lock. It fell with a ‘clunk’, but the cowboy was hit with a revelation far too late the second the door flew open on it’s own.

_He should have hesitated._


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some more violence in this one.

“Hanzo! Get down!” Stumbling back to dodge the door before he was knocked off his feet, Jesse unloaded the entire cylinder on whoever or whatever was behind it. The sound of several curses and groans alongside the pain of someone ungracefully hitting the floor like a sack of potatoes reached his ears. At that point, Jesse may have considered telling the archer that it was alright, that he’d successfully taken the threat out, but… Jesse hadn’t hit them all.

One of the mercs, smartly stationed further away or behind something was unfortunately missed in the cowboy’s attempt to save the situation. Jesse only that, because nobody else could have taken the shot while he was in the open; all of the others he could actually see were either down or their weapons had slipped from their fingers. Metal forced it’s way into his upper arm, into the very same one that sported a replacement limb just a little further down. “Shit-!” The brunette’s first reaction was to curse, flesh screaming at the unwelcome entry and blame blossoming at the sight while he forced his way out of a second shot.

Hanzo had been standing at the ready with the bow in his hands when the cowboy had shouted and the Peacekeeper had fired. His first reaction was to duck for cover as Jesse had shouted, keeping his focus on the flank. He heard the loud cursing and came out from the temporary cover, spotting the one mercenary that had got in a lucky shot. Too bad the man couldn’t dodge the arrow that pierced his skull, his body, like the other dead men falling like a sack of potatoes to the ground. “Jesse, are you alright?” He called over his shoulder as he turned to face back down the hall, nocking a scatter into the bow. He had two of those left and one sonic. The rest were plain arrows. “There are more coming, watch yourself.”

“M’fine!” While Hanzo took care of the second batch of ambushers, Jesse dealt with the ones he’d shot, reloading as best he could. Three were still alive and their grunts and hisses of pain fell silent after a few deafening shots of the Peacekeeper. Only after listening intently and coming up with nothing on his end did he decide it was safe to return his gun to it’s holster.

He tugged his (already) blood-stained serape aside to see just how bad the new wound was. “Darn, ‘nother trophy ta’ add to the collection.” Copious amounts of blood seeped into his shirt, dampening the cloth around the site. He couldn’t exactly see anything at this angle, but judging by the searing sting that ran down to where his bionic arm started, it was deep enough. He found no reason to be truly worried about it, as long as they got the blood flow stopped. He attempted to at check to see how much damage it had done by lifting his arm, hissing at the pain that show through the limb. He decided against trying that again.

The sound of shouting came into earshot and Hanzo pulled the string back, his hand not quite shaking so much, he wasn’t going to fail this time. Their lives rather depended on that. He took a few steps to the right, figuring out the best angle of attack. Once the men were in range, the arrow was let loose and it sailed through the air, splitting upon contact with the wall. Pained cries and the sounds of bodies hitting the floor were a prelude to… mostly silence, sans those few who were still alive and gravely wounded, groaning in agony as they writhed on the floor.

Walking toward the pile of potential, failed ambushes, the archer knew leaving any of these men alive meant they had the potential to get up and fight again was a terrible thing to do. There had been five of them in total, three were dead, two wounded and in the confusion they’d dropped their handguns. Perfect. Taking the nearest one up, he put a bullet in each of the survivor’s skulls to finish them off and he double checked all five. All dead. Good. Plucking the less damaged scatter arrows from wherever they’d stuck, he dropped them into his quiver. They could be reused in the future. He wavered a moment, catching himself on the wall with a small frown before he turned and made his way back to Jesse.

Spotting movement in the corner of his eye, Jesse registered it as Hanzo, and got to tearing up a decent portion of his serape (regretfully) whilst biting back any more pained sounds that would have otherwise come through. At least he had another bright red one back at the base, but this one was his favourite of the two. He was going to have to take a trip back to Mexico to get some more spares, he was starting to run low and without his serape, his look just wasn’t complete.

Watching the cowboy ripping his serape apart for what Hanzo figured was a makeshift bandage, Hanzo couldn’t help but feel a tiny bit sorry for him. After all, he did love those ridiculous things. He knew that pain though, he’d been shot more than enough times over his years wandering as a mercenary. Although, that pain was nothing like he’d endured over the last week.

“Mind helpin’ a cowboy out, partner? Can’t wrap it with one hand.” Jesse’s voice cut into his thoughts and he looked from the wound to the man’s face, nodding in a semi-distracted manner. “Mm, of course.” Taking the fabric, he bound the wound firmly with practiced movements, tying the ends neatly. “There, that shall do until Angela can take a look at you.” There was a short pause, a ghost of a smile on the archer’s lips for a short flash. “So, Jesse. How many did you get in the end? I am up to ten, if I have counted correctly.”

Hanzo did pretty well wrapping his upper arm, but that didn’t stop the cowboy from grunting and hissing in pain each time the fabric was pulled tight. When that was all done, Jesse tipped his hat at the shorter man in appreciation.`Cheers.” There was a strange pause that had McCree eyeing the other inquisitively, catching a very brief flash of… what was that, anyway? He swore he saw something, but couldn’t quite put a name to it. It almost made him want to ask, but then Hanzo might think of him weirdly, or something. Wait. Since when did the archer’s opinion of him even matter? Jesse already knows it isn’t exactly positive.

“Four an’ three makes seven, yer’ in the lead.” He paused a moment, only to add a certain pet name that ought to rile the shorter man up. “Darlin’.” A spike of pain had Jesse grimacing instead of grinning like he wanted, hand finding itself on his wounded arm and gripping it firmly as if that was going to help. “We’d best get goin’ again.”

A scowl quickly appeared on Hanzo’s as that pet name, which was becoming more common the more time they spent in here, was directed to him. He inhaled sharply and huffed irately, Jesse really did know how to get under his skin. He wondered if it was pure natural talent, or if a little Sparrow had been whispering in his head. The taller man was lucky Hanzo didn’t feel the need to readjust the bandage, because he wouldn’t have been gentle. All the years of bottled repressed anger made for a very mean Hanzo from time to time.

“Yes, a good idea. Before even more arrive.” The archer nodded in agreement, patting McCree on the arm. Right over the wound. A wicked glint shone in his eyes as he moved to the open door, past the pile of corpses, grabbing his arrows on the way past, nocking the one from the merc that had got the one up on Jesse as soon as it was yanked from his corpse. Just in case they met more resistance.


	8. Chapter 8

“Hey! Careful where ya’ touch!” Exclaiming rather loudly, McCree’s grimace grew (if it even could) further, and he made his pain known be repeating “ow,” under his breath loud enough for the archer to hear. Although, he had the feeling the older man was going easy on him, it’d hardly be a surprise if that was the case considering Hanzo could certainly pack a punch if one were to anger him enough. He knew that from past experience. Never again. 

It was somewhat cathartic taking these mercenaries down, although, Hanzo wished it was the ones that had tortured him. He’d gladly repay the favour to them ten times over. He was no stranger to causing pain to people, he hadn’t been from a young age as it had been part of his grooming and training to take over the Clan. It was though, also one of the many things he’d seen and done that had killed his childlike wonder and forced a young man to grow up way too fast and way too serious. He felt zero remorse for causing Jesse extra pain, in his opinion, the taller man had it coming.

Outside seemed clear enough, save for the distant sound of fighting toward where the archer assumed Overwatch was waiting to pick them up. It didn’t sound like a large right, which meant either they’d wiped out the main force while he and Jesse got out of the compound, or said main force was laying in wait. Ready to strike. “We need to move, quickly. I have no doubt there will be more coming, Talon is never this sparing with their forces.” 

Jesse took a dramatic breath as he stepped into the fresh air, Hanzo doing the same, albeit less dramatic. The slight, cool breeze was extremely pleasant as it tousled his hair. Jesse looked over at Hanzo, stretching his flesh air out to the side. “Feels like it’s been years since I had my last breath ‘o fresh air, don’t ya’ think?” Actually, to Hanzo, it did. A week of dusty, mostly stagnant air tinged with the reek of blood and his own filth. For Hanzo it felt like it had been an eternity. Hanzo allowed himself a moment to relish this moment, his gaze turning skyward. "Yes, something like that." Years? More like a lifetime. If they weren't in such a hurry, or in danger, he'd have allowed himself a lot more time to relish in this moment. Alas, he didn't have that luxury. They had to get out here sooner rather than later. 

“Yeah, if we can get to the ship quick and fly outta here in time, they might miss us.” Jesse had to agree, there was no way this was all Talon had to throw at them. They had to be planning something. “Well, let’s get goin’, shall we? Ya’ able ta’ keep up if I run?”

“The faster we get away from here, the better. I will do my best to keep up.” He knew he’d regret running, but if they could get out of here sooner than later, it would be worth it. It meant they’d not need to fight anyone else and he could finally rest. “Lead the way…” he paused a moment and cleared his throat, went to stay something and decided to save it for later, “I do not wish to linger any longer.”

Jesse nodded curtly and broke into a run, straight toward all the noise. He knew the ship and the others were there waiting for them, and wasn’t going to leave without them. Hanzo was following him trailing behind slightly, bow held loaded in his hands, his knees (rather rudely) reminding him they were injured. A few times he stumbled, but managed to remain upright, stubbornly refusing to fall. As they ran, the cowboy kept an eye on both Hanzo and their surroundings, his arm screaming in protest as it swung to and fro. 

That abnormal warmth had once returned to the site of the wound and Jesse was pretty sure it was bleeding again, but that didn’t stop him. At least, not until he spotted a flash of green in the distance and his hand rose to the bud in his ear as he came to a sudden halt, ignoring his need for air. “Genji? Oi, Genji! Can ya’ hear me?” one second, two, three… no answer. The line was dead, or at least on McCree’s end. He wouldn’t be surprised if there was some sort of interceptor on the base that had wrecked it completely. Shouting wouldn’t work either, with all the commotion and the younger Shimada being way out of earshot.

Besides, that would also be a dead giveaway of their current position to any nearby enemies, Jesse wasn’t willing to risk it with both he and Hanzo incapacitated. The neon green lines continued to move, back and forth, up on top of shipping containers and God only knows what else. The cowboy cursed under his breath, finally letting another deep breath of air into his lungs. All they could do for now was hope for the cyborg to find them. Hanzo hadn’t been too far behind Jesse and was relieved when the taller man stopped running. His chest was heaving and everything hurt again, still? One of those. He too, had reopened some of the many wounds on his body, not that it mattered. His clothing was beyond ruined already.

“Remind me ta’ ask if yer’ lil’ brother can have super hearin’ installed.” Either way, they both needed a breather, chancing a glance at the archer to make sure he wasn’t about to collapse. “Hrmfph.” Hanzo’s reply was nothing but the common sound he made when Genji was mentioned to him. Perhaps one day, one of the two brothers would explain why Hanzo was still so hateful of his younger brother. Maybe.

Unfortunately, the two men were quickly met with more company that hadn’t quite noticed them yet. Jesse gestured toward the nearest shipping container and they both moved over to duck behind it. Jesse made sure Hanzo was the first to reach it since he was, as much as the archer may want to kill him to admit, he was the weaker of the two right now. Once they were safely hidden, the cowboy was the first to speak. “I’ve got a plan. I’ll throw one of these ‘ere grenades to stun ‘em. Saves us from havin’ ta’ hit movin’ targets.” He paused for a moment, frowning and unclasping one from his belt. “Only problem is, I can’t throw it,” gesturing to his wounded arm, McCree instead held the flash-bang out for Hanzo with no hesitation. “I hope ya’ got a good throwin’ arm.”

With a small tut, Hanzo took the grenade. “I am sure I can throw this just fine.” Sure, he may have never had the chance to use grenades in the past but how hard was it to throw something? “Just be ready to fire upon them.” Eyeing the flash-bang a moment, he waited for the group of mercs to move a little closer together. “On three.” It looked like Jesse was finally getting his countdown with someone and a pleased grin showed on his face, hand already on the grip of the Peacekeeper. Finally, someone was going to humour him, although… the fact it was Hanzo of all people had him rolling his eyes at the sheer irony.

Once the men were close enough together, Hanzo began the count, hurling the grenade on the third count and ducked back behind cover. The flash-bang landed just off from the centre of the group, exploding with a loud ‘bang’ and blinding them with a dazzlingly bright flash of light.

“It’s high noon,” (that line always made Hanzo roll his eyes) Jesse dove out from behind their cover, he yanked his gun from it’s holster and rolled (much to his arms distaste with how much the movement hurt), reloading the partially empty cylinder. When he came to the end and jumped to his feet, the brunette’s demeanour switched out to one of absolute focus, barrel already being aimed at each of the Talon mercs’ heads. When the blinding light had dissipated entirely he’d taken the time he needed to line up the killing shots. Jesse forced his hand up to help with steadying his gun and fired in quick succession, nailing one, two, three, four in the head. Everyone single one of them slumped forward at the same time and fell to the ground, not even realising what had hit hit them aside from the, well, grenade. Hanzo hadn’t even been able to take one shot.

“I’m pretty sure I’m leadin’ now.” Turning to Hanzo with a cocky grin, Jesse was all too proud of himself, doing his best to not allow the p— argh shit. In the next second, the cowboy succumbed to the agony that had at least doubled thanks to his stupid roll. Grimacing and unable to pull the finishing touch together like he wanted to,, he regretfully returned the Peacekeeper back to where it belonged, gripping the wound once again. “T-this thing’s seriously messin’ me up. How’re ya’ holdin’ up over there?”

“For now, you are.” He snorted, deciding he would win no matter what and hey, if it always came down it it… he could always kill Genji again, right? “I am doing fine,” sort of, “I will be doing much better once we are on the ship and back home.” Really, all he wanted was a shower, some food and some rest alone in his room on his comfortable bed. Oh, and probably some medical attention somewhere before his best. He really wasn’t sure how much longer he could keep this brave face on, he hated to appear weak, especially in front of comrades. He would stick with being ‘fine’ for now. “Perhaps you should rest your arm, I can handle anyone else that gets in our way.” He’d make doubly sure he would, especially as he didn’t want to lose (and to Jesse of all people).

“Aha, nice try, partner. I ain’t stupid, yer’ just’ tryin’ ta’ assure yer’ victory, bit I can do plenty with one arm.” He knew fully well that Hanzo hated to lose and it was the exact same for Jesse. There was no way the cowboy would let the ninja win that easily, even if he was probably right in the suggestion that he should rest his arm. But then again, by that logic, Hanzo should rest his entire body. “Well, ‘nuff talkin’ ‘n more movin’.” 

Well, Hanzo had tried, too bad Jesse wasn’t stupid (most of the time). “I am simply concerned for your arm.” He gestured casually, playing it off as nothing more than that. Jesse said nothing more and gestured toward where the commotion was coming from with his head before he started to run. Hanzo followed him once again, keeping an eye out for any potential additions to his ki-… for any enemies that might cause them trouble while they were en route to the ship. There was no doubt they’d fine more mercs between now and then and…

Oh. The ship was soon in sight, the path clear. Hanzo grunted in annoyance. “Kuso…” Shit, he’d lost. Even if he did take out Genji, he’d still be one short. Jesse didn’t believe for one moment that Hanzo was actually concerned, not even for a second. Not even a week ago the seemed to hate his guts and there was no way one rescue was going to make the shorter man rethink the way he treated the cowboy. He was far too serious, stubborn and prideful for that, and the entirety of Overwatch knew it.

McCree’s pride and overconfident smirk only grew at the sight of the ship that was steadily growing in size the closer they got. Genji had already caught sight of them and had decided to meet them at the open hanger. Jesse shot Hanzo a look that said ‘I win, so what are you going to do about it, huh?’, passing by Jack who had his back turned and was finishing off an opponent with his helix rockets. Talk about overkill. When they finally arrived, Genji only had to take one scrutinising look at the both of them, which lingered on Hanzo for a few moments longer before he vanished into the ship to fetch their well-needed ‘guardian angel’.

Hanzo’s pride was rather bruised right now, almost more than his body. He couldn’t believe that he’d lost and to Jesse of all people. Then again, the common sense part of his mind was amazed he’d been able to get through this was as many kills as he had. Although, that smirk on Jesse’s face… Hanzo’s bruised eyes narrowed and it was really, really hard for him not to… no wait. Screw it.

“Congratulations are in order, I suppose.” He balled his fist and gave Jesse’s wound a less than friendly, ‘friendly’ shoulder punch. He was after all, a poor loser. He had scowled at Genji as his sibling’s gaze lingered on him, the animosity he held toward his Jesse was nothing compared to what he held toward his younger brother. Not by a long shot. No matter how hard Genji tried to repair their friendship, Hanzo refused to budge on that stance.

Now that they were safe and standing at the bottom of the ramp, Hanzo’s body decided that it was time to stop. Everything went black. “I… cannot see.” He muttered vaguely. With very little grace, his eyes rolled back and his body collapsed, crumpling onto the ramp. His bow clattered to the ground beside him and some of the few remaining arrows spilled from the quiver.

 

“Hey, wait-” Why Jesse hadn’t seen that punch coming sooner, he wasn’t sure. But alas, when it was delivered to the weeping wound, the cowboy made a sound that was almost a bit like a whine; exaggerated of course to see if he couldn’t pluck at Hanzo’s guilt string. It didn’t work, if Hanzo’s collapse was anything to go by. “Whoa now, darlin’.” Even with the stinging burn, McCree still found himself on his knees, dragging the exhausted ninja onto his lap since the ramp below them from definitely far from a soft surface.


	9. Chapter 9

Everyone was home. Safe and secure, chatting away in the common room of the base. A good two days had passed and Hanzo was yet to wake up, likely from exhaustion. Jesse was currently splayed out on the couch, hat over his eyes with a grin present on his lips, pleased enough that they had both gotten out alive. Angela had made short work of his own wound after taking care of their resident and human Shimada, claiming that it was nothing to howl on about.

There was no serious damage, the bullets had thankfully missed the nerves and the hole was quite clean, leading to no potential infections. Although the cowboy had tried quite hard to convince her that no, he hadn’t been ‘howling in pain like the dog he was’, or at least that’s what she called him. That woman would be quite nasty when she wanted to be.

Aside from that, not much else had happened in those last couple of days. It had been peaceful, letting those who had gone on the mission to recover and rest. Although, Lena had decided to plan and party. Jack flipped his shit about it, Lucio decided (of course) that he’d DJ for it. The party wasn’t for tonight, no, it for a few days to celebrate Jesse and Hanzo’s return, but more-so the latter. Both the cowboy and Genji tried rather desperately to convince her that the men wouldn’t appreciate it in the slightest, but no, Lena was having none of it. The party was happening no matter what.

When Hanzo finally awoke he was in much cleaner clothing and apparently had even been bathed while he’d been unconscious. He didn’t even remember passing out, but again, that came with the territory. The only sound aside from his own breathing he could pick up through the fog that clouded his mind was the gentle beeping of the heart rate monitor. The archer had no idea how long he’d been out, but as his vision focused, he could see it was mid afternoon by the 24 hour clock on the wall above the exit door.

Gingerly, he sat himself up. Everything still ached, but it seemed to be dulled at least. The drip in the top of his hand was removed, one finger pressing over the entrance point to stop the ebb of blood. The monitor on his finger was next to go and he realised at this point, he was alone in the med-bay. That was fine, it gave him an excuse to walk. Sliding his legs over the edge of the bed, he noticed they were still pretty bruised and a bit puffy, bandages covered the slash wounds, no doubt the worse ones were stitched up, so he’d have to be careful.

Setting his feet on the cool floor, he pushed himself up slowly, testing the weight first and took a couple of awkward steps. The lack of use coupled with the abuse his body had been under had left his muscles stiffer than they had been the day of the rescue. So, for now, the archer was reduced to a limping shuffle as he made his way for the common room (as tempting as it was to go straight to his room). Letting the others know he was awake and okay was probably the right thing to do. The distant sound of voices grew louder ass he reached the doorway, leaning against the frame to just lurk a moment.

Jesse’s arm had unfortunately needed bandaging, it was hardly severe but the bullet had penetrated deep enough to leave him in pain until it was properly healed. A couple of stitches held the wound closed, assisting in that healing it so needed. While it had been healing quite nicely, according to Mercy, Jesse had been experiencing more drowsiness than normal and that led to many, many naps. It wasn’t even anything serious, he just had the urge to, well… sleep. Which he did often. Lena had caught him in the act only yesterday, napping in the dining room on one of the benches and he still hadn’t lived it down! She’d been going on and on about how he needs his ‘granny naps’ and it’s damn near awful no matter how much he found himself laughing along with her.

Still, he learned his lesson from that, especially when he had to scrub bright green permanent marker from his face, kudos to a certain cyborg ninja. Although, alas, the time for napping had come again and he slipped away all too easy, lucky that Lena had a majority of the group’s attention. The others who weren’t listening were giving him a break, not mentioning his attempted exit. However, there Hanzo was, looking leaps and bounds better than he had two days prior. The first thing the cowboy did at the sight of him was grin, and rather cheerfully set his flesh hand on the ninja’s shoulder. “Glad to see yer’ awake, sunshine. Don’t go forgettin’ my prize, a’ight?” He offered him a quick wink and let his hand slid back off, leaving just like that. Now wasn’t the time for pissing Hanzo off, it was the time for a nap.

The archer didn’t even have time to react to Jesse, the man was already gone. Hanzo had forgotten he’d lost their little wager and about the gunslinger’s prize. He’d have to make sure to give it to him later. When the cowboy reached his room McCree all too eagerly stepped inside, closed the door and slumped into bed, not even bothering to take his hat off. After not even a few minutes, he was already out like a light. Guess Lena was right, he really was in need of more granny naps.

For Hanzo, the rest of the afternoon and evening was spent sitting quietly with the others in the common room. Of course, Jack had demanded some form of debriefing and had asked a whole lot of questions of the archer. Some he answered, some he couldn’t and a select few he dodged. He wasn’t interested in reliving every moment of the past week if he could help it. Angela had instructed him, quite sternly, to only eat small meals at first. No matter how hungry he was, too much food after so many days without any would make him sick. The same with liquids, small sips at regular intervals.

Finally, he grew too tired to remain awake any longer and retreated to the one safe space he had. His room here was really the only place he called home now days, always neat and sparsely decorated. Not even any pictures on the walls. Closing his door, the archer exhaled softly and drew his blinds, the comfort of being in his own room washing over him. Changing into a set of navy blue silk pajamas, he climbed into bed and shuffled down under the covers. It barely took any time for his eyes to slide closed.


	10. Chapter 10

Hanzo’s eyes snapped open not even five minutes after he’d closed them, flashes of memories of the last week tearing him from rest. With a heavy sigh, he rolled over and tried again only to have the same thing happen. This continued for at least an hour before he threw back the covers and set up, rubbing his hands over his face. This whole business had him rattled, but Hanzo being Hanzo, he wouldn’t tell anyone. He hadn’t told anyone what had happened, as much as Jack had tried to coax him to, he’d avoided giving the man anything useful. All they had to go by were the physical signs, Angela had been able to pinpoint some of what had happened while he’d been out.

Sliding off the bed, he knelt on the floor and attempted to meditate. That, unfortunately, had the same result as trying to sleep. He just couldn’t push the memories away. He huffed and got to his feet, pacing back and forth as he wracked his brain trying to figure out some way lull himself to sleep. Working out would be no good, everything still hurt too much for that, he’d probably do more harm than good. He really needed to sleep, or else he’d be a bear with three sore heads tomorrow and all three would probably come with a pounding headache, or a migraine. 

Now though, he padded through the silent, darkened halls of the base. This was a stupid idea, a really stupid idea, but it was the only thing he could think of trying at this point. He stopped and raised a hand, tapping on the door. “Jesse?” He didn’t wait for the door to be answered before he opened it and stepped inside, mentally scolding himself for this. “Would you mind if…” he paused, this felt really stupid, but it had been such a long time since he’d felt this scared and vulnerable. Being alone was far from ideal right now, “if I slept on your floor? I cannot sleep and nothing else has worked.”

Jesse had been quite happily (still) asleep when the knocking on the door had roused him. Sleep was one of his many pleasures in life that he enjoyed too much, right next to drinking and taking drags of his cigar. A rose between two thorns, you could say. There really was never anything like catching up on much-needed sleep, although he wasn’t exactly a morning person. He struggled to wake up quickly at the best of times, take right now for example. 

Still half asleep with his hair sticking out in odd locations on his head and with slits for eyes, Jesse peered through the darkness at his visitor, not giving the slightest shit that they’d gone ahead and let themselves in. After said person continued to speak though, McCree picked up on who it was and it woke him up all too quickly. Although, something was off. The cowboy took a moment to process both the abnormally large figure of Hanzo looming nearby after sitting up. It took him a good ten seconds (if not fifteen) for him to actually pick up on what those words entailed, and further still to figure out how to answer such a question.

This was not something he expected to happen, that was for sure. “If yer’ havin’ trouble sleepin’, wouldn’t bein’ on the floor make it worse?” Jesse answered Hanzo’s question with one of his own, still watching - seriously, why does the archer look so big right now? He couldn’t have packed on a tonne of weight in the last few hours, could be? No way, that isn’t possible the last he checked, but it might be prudent to give the man a proper answer. “I ain’t lettin’ ya’ sleep on the floor,” if one were to turn on the light they’d see just how messy it was, spurred boots, socks, a few shirts and now a destroyed serape littering most of it’s surface. The cowboy, whose hat was crumpled and lying on his pillow, had to think. Hanzo was having issues sleeping, and so he’d decided to come to… him. Him. Why the hell- no, no. Let’s not question it, because Jesse felt touched in an… odd sort of way. 

“But ya’ can sleep with me, if ya’ want.” Despite everything though, including how much courage it must have taken the man to actually come to Jesse for help, the cowboy didn’t make as much of a fuss as he usually would, finally deciding to toss the hat and remove the green serape from his shoulders. If Hanzo was telling the truth (which of course he was, he’s as serious as a brick), then it wasn’t a good idea to start poking and joking. Even McCree had a shred of decency and knew when it was appropriate, and when he’d shove it up someone else’s arse in favour of being a little more serious. “C’mere.” Patting the opposite side of the bed to what he was currently sitting in, the brunette waited patiently for a response. It was certainly strange, though. It worried him to know that Hanzo was having difficulty sleeping, and the urge to help the man in any way possible was far more prevalent than it had been a few weeks back. Had Hanzo come to him then, they’d both probably have gotten into a fight, but now? All he could think of was how he could help, and for some reason he was getting the urge to cuddle him. Yes, you heard me. He wanted to cuddle with Hanzo.

The large, almost blob-shaped Hanzo silhouette shuffled and huffed at the cowboy’s insistence that he sleep in the bed with him. He wanted to resist and insist that no, the floor would be more than suitable; aside from the fact that a hard floor would be really uncomfortable, he remembered how messy Jesse’s room could be. No doubt the gunslinger was expecting him to tense, bristle and snap at him stubbornly about how that was a terrible idea and that if the other members of Overwatch found out or saw them… But no, he was at the end of his rope currently and of all people he felt like being in the presence of… it was the cowboy. There was a short silence before he finally gave in and replied, a defeated sigh coming from the looming mass that moved over to the empty side of the bed. “Fine.” Hell, he didn’t even feel the need to warn Jesse to not tell anyone. He just wanted to sleep.

As he got closer, the cowboy would finally be able to see why Hanzo had suddenly gained height and mass as he sat on the side of the bed. He’d become one with his comforter, the end drawn up over his head like a hooded cloak, all fluffy and warm. It was still tightly wrapped around him as he laid himself down in the one thing that kept him from allowing himself to break down into some ugly cry session. His back faced Jesse, he didn’t want to talk about it. He just needed the company.

Jesse really had been expecting Hanzo to turn into an angry porcupine at the mere mention of sleeping in the same bed, but to his surprise, he didn’t. It was refreshing to say the least, not having to argue his point until he finally convinced the stubborn man. Listening to Hanzo’s approach, Jesse was finally able to see why the archer had morphed into something that looked nothing like a human and it bought about a soft chuckle. “Ya’ look comfy in here.” Plus, the cowboy had to admit, it was rather cute. Hanzo never seemed the type to become one with a comforter, if not turn into a burrito. Yet here he was, looking so warm. 

Feeling the mattress dip slightly when Hanzo first laid himself down, McCree watched him for a little longer than he ought to, kid of wishing that comforter wasn’t in the way of him being able to properly see the man. But, alas, it was and there was no way Jesse wouldn’t get the shit whacked out of him if he tried to peel it off. So, instead, unfortunately, the cowboy laid himself down, choosing to face the archer’s back rather than away.

Jesse gave the older a chance to settle in, hopefully allowing him to lose some of those metaphorical quills before he decided against common sense and reason. Heaving a sigh, the cowboy made sure to avoid moving his slung arm too much considering he was told not to use it, and daringly slid an arm around Hanzo, quite literally pulling the archer closer. Jesse knew fully well what might happen in response, but at that thought his arm only seemed to tighten.


	11. Chapter 11

The bed was more comfortable than he’d expected, especially wrapped up the way he was. It wasn’t like Hanzo was a stranger to the art of being a burrito, he used to do it when he was younger. He’d sit by the fire on cold winter nights, book in hand once everyone else had gone to bed. Although now days, he tended to do that alone in the safety of his room, away from prying eyes. It was one of the few pleasant memories he had from growing up that he kept a hold of. 

Some subtle movement from the cowboy pulled him from his thoughts and just assumed it was Jesse getting comfortable. That was, until an arm slid around him and pulled him closer. Those metaphorical quills bristled instantly. Why was he being hugged? The gunslinger knew he hated to be hugged, being touched was bad enough. “Jesse…” his tone was low and dangerous, “what do you think you are doing?” Apparently the angry porcupine was still very much there and if Hanzo wasn’t wrapped up, Jesse probably would have found himself with an elbow slamming into whatever body part it could connect with.

“Dunno what yer’ talkin’ ‘bout,” Jesse shrugged somehow in his current position. There was nothing weird going on here, nothing at all. Even if Hanzo didn’t like being hugged, let alone being touched, he was quite determined to act as thought nothing was wrong with what he was doing. Something he did all the time. “I ain’t technically touchin’ ya, yanno’.” It was true, the comforter was in the way of that, keeping them separated. Besides, Jesse might as well do it now because he had a certain tendency to grapple on to whatever he could find in his sleep, and not let go.

This was, after all, better than dropping it on him while they’re both in the world of dreams. Shifting his body around some more, the cowboy got ridiculously comfortable, blatantly ignoring the threatening porcupine’s quills they were probably about to stab him any second now. He was spooning Hanzo and he still couldn’t believe the archer had actually gotten into his bed. Really, Hanzo should have expected something like this to happen; there was no way it wouldn’t.

“You know precisely what I am talking about.” Oh boy, the older man was getting very bristly right now and that last quip was almost it… but that snuggling? That was the last straw and his entire presence turned prickly, despite his growing need to sleep, his anger took over. With no more verbal warnings, the porcupine emerged from within the comfort-that-was-less-comfortable-because-of-that-arm. He rolled over to face Jesse, a seething scowl visible on his face this close. The comforter didn’t leave much of a barrier between them and he found his face uncomfortably close as he glared dangerously at his temporary bedfellow.

Jesse felt Hanzo move and he swore he felt something sharp poking at him. Maybe the archer really was a porcupine. “Nah, I really don’t.” Still, he kept to his plan for as long as possible, staring the archer dead in the eye when he turned over to face him.

“You will let go of me, Jesse. I am not in the mood for… whatever this is.” He would hurt the man if he needed to, even though McCree had saved his life, because there was no way he would have made it out of there alone… but this? This was a completely different kettle of fish.

Too bad Jesse’s plan didn’t last long, because Hanzo’s insistence that he let go was oddly… irritating. McCree didn’t want to listen to him and it lead to his expression hardening. “Oi, darlin’. Ya’ seem ta’ be forgettin’ somethin’ ‘ere. You walked in ‘ere, askin’ ta’ spend tha’ night. Ya’ should’ve known somethin’ like this was gonna happen, so don’t go gettin’ angry at me.” Not averting his eyes for even a second, Jesse stood his ground, his arm not moving from it’s spot. “Besides, cuddlin’ always helps.” Of course, the cowboy couldn’t remain serious for long, a mischievous grin breaking across his face shortly after. “C’mon, why don’t ya’ just let loose for one night? Ya’ sure could use it.”

Sometimes, Jesse was just as stubborn as Hanzo. Almost. This moment seemed to be one of them. “I was not aware that this would happen. I expected to sleep, I did not come here for cuddles. Especially not with you!” Angry burrito porcupine Hanzo was completely overreacting to this, this again, that’s how he was when it came to his personal space. More so when he was overtired, in pain and grumpier than normal. “Is it really so hard to remove your arm and allow me to rest?” An incredulous looked crossed his features and he sighed irately. Although, as he continued, his voice seemed to be more tense and tight. “Perhaps it works for you, but I know you are aware that I do not like cuddling. So no, I will not just… ‘let loose’ for one night.” 

Although, one of the main reasons he didn’t want the hug is he knew it would end up with him breaking down in front of the annoying cowpoke, who he assumed would probably taunt him over it. The rage faded away and his brow furrowed, not into his normal grumpy furrow. This one looked… sad. “All I want to do is sleep. That is all I came here for. Please, Jesse. Let me rest.” Boy he was in a real mood right now and in the few hours he’d been in the common room, no one had mentioned the upcoming party to him. Lena wanted it to be a surprise so no one was allowed to warn him. They’d best hope his mood improved over the next few days.

Jesse pulled back slightly, not wanting to be so close while the angry porcupine burrito had his little outburst. The man was definitely overreacting, something that the cowboy was oh-so-used to dealing with, but it only aided in fueling his frustration. “Hanzo…” Trailing off, Jesse wasn’t able to get anything else out before the archer continued his rant. At the end, yes, he caught that look. It threw him completely off balance, leaving him trying to quip back, to say something in his defense, but when he opened his mouth, “…Gotcha’,” was what he responded with. 

Finally releasing the shorter man entirely, Jesse didn’t think his actions would have such a negative effect, but now it seemed it had backfired on him. All he felt was angry, confused and dare he say, guilty, unable to understand why the man looked so damned sad. He’d even caught the strain in Hanzo’s voice when he was speaking and that just made it worse. “Ya’ just wanted some company, right?” Bitterly, Jesse sat up and swung his legs over the edge of the bed, his words holding hints of a sorrowful undertone. If Hanzo wanted to be left alone, then fine. There was no way McCree would be able to just lay there. He stood up and moved to the other side of the room, where the Peacekeeper’s holster lay draped over a chair. Lifting it out of the way, he proceeded to slump onto the seat almost dejectedly, heaving a quiet sigh. “I’ll be ‘ere, so sleep away.”

Now not only did Jesse feel bad, Hanzo too was sad, mad, confused, uncomfortable and guilt for… apparently upsetting the taller man. At least he was left alone to sleep right? So he could finally get that sleep he so badly needed? Wrong. He could see Jesse sitting in the dark room, sulking on the chair on the other side of the bedroom. It wasn’t like he was a stranger to guilt, but this time it was different. After all, he had invaded the cowboy’s room like a whiny child.


	12. Chapter 12

Hanzo lay there, alone on the bed, re-wrapped tightly in the comforter, still bristling, yet sad. The next several minutes were spent with him tossing and turning where he lay, finally he tossed the comforter off him with a loud huff as he lay atop it. “Jesse…” Damn this guilt. “Jesse, come back to your bed.” That was… sort of an apology? A terrible one at that. “All I wanted was to have you not trying to hug me, nothing more,” he paused, sighing, “I did not intend to drive you away.” Well, he did. Sort of, but not that far away and not like that.

Jesse had been fiddling with the Peacekeeper in the dark, fingers brushing over the six-shooter’s metal surface after slipping it from it’s holster. It was better than letting himself stew in the tornado that was his mind, after all. Although, he wasn’t so concentrated on it that he missed all of Hanzo’s tossing and turning. Still, he didn’t bother to comment on it, let alone say anything at all. That would probably just aggravate them both even more than they already were. 

When the huff sounded, he looked up from the gun he was peering at and focused on the archer, listening quietly. “I ain’t huggin’, it’s cuddlin’.” Jesse jested, having picked up on the very, very subtle… apology, thing. Whatever it was. There was no way his confusion and anger had just disappeared though, still very present in the back of his mind, but he held it down. “So what’s botherin’ ya’?” Instead of listening to the archer, the gunslinger remained seated where he was. “Ya’ don’t have ya’ tell me, but… I’d love an explanation for… well,” he lifted his flesh arm and gestured to the bed, “this.”

“Whatever it was. I did not and do not want it. From anyone. So do not take it personally.” Because he had a feeling Jesse had done just that, for whatever reason. Shuffling around on the bed, he slid underneath the comforter, rather than re-wrapping himself up in it. He rolled onto his side, eyes focusing on the man who had yet to move from the chair. He really, really didn’t want to talk about it. The others had already tried to get more information out of him than he was willing to share, they weren’t content with the knowledge that they didn’t try and extract any information from him.

Maybe… maybe he owed something to Jesse, not the details… just, telling the taller man why he was being extra testy. He fell quiet, at war with himself. His family were quite secretive, which was quite important due to them being yakuza and all. Spelling secrets accidentally as children had both himself and Genji in more trouble than they could handle. “I…” he trailed off and cleared his throat, “being locked in that room, alone, in the dark for all that time… With no food, barely any water, no explanation as to why I was there or what they wanted from me…” The strain in his words made it obvious that he really wasn’t doing good at all. “On top of that, the things they did to me…” His voice broke and his mouth snapped shut as he grit his jaw. No. No. Not now.

Jesse pouted, the slight reassurance (Hanzo probably hadn’t even thought of it that way) at least not making him feel so… well, guilty. “Damn, yer’ gonna be a big party pooper in a relationship.” If he ever got into one. None of the others even thought he was capable of liking someone enough to think about romance.

Hanzo forced a laugh, a rather pathetic attempt at one. “Perhaps…” Sometimes he really wish he did have someone, but it had been so very long since he’d felt anything really positive for anyone outside of camaraderie. He’d just stopped letting himself care, keeping himself distracted with reading or working out on the days when his loneliness ate at him.

When the archer finally spilled, Jesse didn’t interrupt. All he was after was an explanation, not details as to what happened while he was being held captive, just… a reason for the intrusion and all the extra spikes. Admittedly, he expecting the archer to answer him at all, so he was grateful for what he got, able to understand just what might have been going on in the other’s head, even if only a little. “Cheers, Han. That’s all I wanted ta’ know.” Rather than calling him by that God-awful pet name the archer seemed to thoroughly dislike, Jesse just shortened his name. So, Hanzo had come because he couldn’t cope on his own- or at least, that’s what McCree had gotten from that and it was the most he planned on getting.

There really was no point trying to prod for more information, not when he knew how secretive the older Shimada was, and especially not when he sounded so vulnerable. It was enough for the man to let that much slip and Jesse wasn’t about to make it any harder for him. Returning his gun to it’s holster, the cowboy stood up and discarded it back on the chair, returning to the bed shortly after. He lowered himself to sit on the edge, not quite lying down just yet because he had something else to say.

“So, I know what yer’ gonna say, ‘I do not need yer’ help’, yada-yada. But, if yer’ havin’ trouble or ya’ need someone to blow some steam with, I’m ready an’ willin’ ta’ help with that,” and just knowing that there was someone there, whether they’re the loudest, most obnoxious cowboy on Earth… Jesse had always found it to be comforting. Even if that support never gets used, it’s the thought that counts and that’s why, maybe, voicing that he was there for him if required… maybe it’ll help Hanzo too. That was his hope. “Now, ‘nuff about this heavy topic. It ain’t my style.” Picking up his usual demeanor in favour of dispelling the all-too-serious situation, Jesse flopped down on his back with a loud exhale and cat-like stretch.

Hanzo remained quiet, his jaw was still clenched tightly because it wasn’t just the events of the past week. It was everything he’d been bottling up his entire damned life. He knew all it took was a small crack and things were in danger of spilling out without a way to stop them. He didn’t want that. Strong men did not cry. That had been drilled into him since he was a boy, they’d tried it with Genji as well, but he was far more resistant to it. He was far more of a free spirit than his parents or older brother. It was one of the many things Hanzo resented the now cyborg for.

Although, that offer… Not in his thirty eight years of life had anyone ever offered that to him. Mostly because he kept everyone he knew at a comfortable distance, physically and importantly, emotionally. It was strangely comforting, despite Jesse being completely correct about Hanzo being resistant to asking for help from people. As Jesse fell back onto the bed, the archer remained silent, someone surprised that the man he almost constantly fought with had offered to be there for him if he needed it. “Thank you, Jesse.” He was completely sincere in his words once he finally spoke. “You have no idea how much that offer means to me.” Hell, he might even take him up on that once things settled down a little. “Perhaps now, we can both finally get the sleep we need.”

Jesse, on the other hand, had been in all sorts of relationships. To friends-with-benefits, one night stands to a proper couple. Although, the latter was far more rare as he was never really, immersed in them, so to say. It was mostly the companionship he sought, the presence of someone else. Even with all their fighting, Jesse wasn’t about to leave a comrade in the dark. It wasn’t like they hated each other so much that they were constantly making attempts on each other’s lives, and after all, hearing Hanzo’s appreciation for it made it the more worthwhile. “Don’t sweat it.” Unable to resist smiling to himself, the cowboy peered up at the ceiling for a few moments, humming in response to what the archer had said about sleeping. When all went quiet, it took a very short amount of time for McCree to drift off into dreamland.


	13. Chapter 13

Hanzo had fallen asleep before Jesse had, that talk had both an exhausting and helpful effect. Although, he was glad it was dark when he opened up about some of the many things that had been bothering him. By the next morning, the two men had ended up snuggled closely together. Hanzo’s head rested on Jesse’s upper arm, one hand splayed out across his chest and the cowboy’s arm around his shoulder.

Sometime during the night, the dragons has come out. Probably sensing Hanzo’s distress (a little too late) and they’d joined in on the cuddle pile. Mizuchi (the one that liked Jesse) was curled against the other side of the younger man. Watatsumi was draped along Hanzo’s side quite happily. Much to his disgust, Hanzo awoke and it felt entirely too early to… He froze completely, his eyes snapping open wide as he realised exactly how the two of them were laying. Now, he could have reacted like a normal person and gently untangled himself, but no, this was Hanzo Shimada. He yanked himself backward forcefully, free of Jesse’s (rather comforting) cuddle (not that he’d admit it) and in his haste, slipped off the edge of the mattress. He landed on the messy floor with a loud thud and a half awake grunt of displeasure.

Now, if it was Jesse who had woken up first. He wouldn’t have moved at all, no, he would’ve preferred to savour the situation and how incredibly warm he was. It was just unfortunate that Hanzo couldn’t swallow his pride long enough to actually consider enjoying it. Waking up rather abruptly when his personal hot water bottle disappeared, McCree’s eyes snapped open to see… nothing? He was just about to frown when he heard a thud that was quickly followed by a grunt and he sat up far too quickly, that familiar lightheaded feeling gracing him so soon in the morning… Was it even morning? Gah, Jesse didn’t care.

After taking a moment to allow that God-awful feeling to dissipate, the cowboy chanced a look at the floor on the other side of the bed, where, as he expected, Hanzo had rather ungracefully plopped down. By plopped, he meant fell off. Jesse stared through half-lidded eyes for a lot longer than was appropriate. His hazy, half-asleep brain processing everything until finally, he let out an undignified snort that was completely involuntary, not to mention downright embarrassing. The cowboy’s face flushed a hot red, he quickly turned his head away and balled a fist to cough into as a poor cover up. “Are ya… comfy down there?”

It had taken Hanzo a moment to realise that yes, he’d just fallen off a bed. He heard movement as Jesse woke, shivering a little at the loss of the nice, comfy warmth of the dragon and… McCree. Although, before he’d woken up and realised his rather awkward predicament, he had been really comfortable and even better, his sleep had been dreamless. That awful snort of a laugh from the cowboy caught him completely off guard and before he could even try to stop it, he laughed. Sure, it was at Jesse’s expense, but it was a real, non-forced laugh. Although it didn’t last long and he quickly put a stop to it, clearing his throat.

“Yes, Jesse,” he rolled his eyes, his tone thick with sarcasm, “I find your messy floor a delight to sit upon.” He pushed himself to his feet, slowly, things still hurt and dusted himself off. His hair was loose, hanging just above his shoulders and it was quite tousled from his sleep. He raised a hand and raked his fingers through it, pushing it back from his face in some attempt to neaten it before sleepily fisting the sleep from his eyes. “I suppose I should go back to my bedroom before someone thinks something happened between us last night.” There was no way in Hell he was about to tell the brunette how they’d woken up. Nope. Not ever.

Hanzo’s laughter caused Jesse to freeze, hardly even blinking as the man he swore never laughed around him before, did just that. It was like music to his hears, it really was. Even if it was at his snort. The cowboy wasn’t going to hold it against him, since it bought a dumb looking grin to his lips. Apparently last night must have done the trick because Jesse swears that Hanzo isn’t quite as grump as he was last night. In fact, the cowboy would even dare to say that the archer might be a little less hostile as a whole, and that was definitely a good sign.

When Hanzo stood up however, Jesse was greeted by none other than an incredibly nice sight, and all of a sudden he just wanted to keep the man here for much longer than necessary. “Or ‘ya could stay a while longer? I can scope out the hallway when ya’ leave so there’s no surprises,” the cowboy suggested with a determined glint in his eyes. In comparison to the Shimada, Jesse was an absolute mess, collar rumped and even after coming through his matted hair with his hand, it was still looking an awful lot like a bird’s nest. 

Don’t get him wrong; it wasn’t usually this bad, it’s just… sleeping through half the day and the whole night tended to do things. Hanzo was just lucky he’d decided to sleep in some clothes, because otherwise he would have been, well, naked underneath the sheets and that would have been one hell of a surprise. Something popped into the cowboy’s head the moment he turned around to hop off the bed, picking up both slumbering dragons along the way, despite one not liking him nearly as much. “Better yet, I could try that bow of yer’s. Ya’ didn’t win, but I’m a little curious about it, so how ‘bout it?”

The raven-haired man flicked some more… something, probably dust, from the sleeve of his pajamas and lofted a brow at the offer. He took a few moments to consider it, realising that he did feel a lot better after spending some time with McCree. Even his mood seemed somehow lighter right now. In fact, he didn’t feel the need to instantly decline the taller man’s offer and storm out all angry and dramatic.

Perhaps it was just due to him still being half-asleep. One of those were surely the culprit. “Hrm… I suppose we could do that, although, I will need to change my clothing first.” No doubt his bow had been left strung, which was so bad for the string, it should be fine though. It wasn’t like any of the others would have known to unstring it while he was unconscious. “I will also need by bow, and of course, you still need your prize.” He had more than enough other ribbons, so losing one was no issue, after all, there were lots of other things Jesse could have asked for.

Jesse had never had so much luck with the man in two days, minus their small argument last night. “Meet ya’ at the trainin’ area when we’re all set, then?” Flicking his head in some completely random direction, Jesse circled around his head with the sleeping dragons, gently scratching their heads with his thumbs as he went. “Hold up, you can’t go forgettin’ these lil’ guys.” He stopped when he was close enough to Hanzo, lifting one of the two and settled it around the older man’s neck, fingers brushing against the revealed skin there for no more than a moment. Resting the other on top of the first, McCree stepped back and gave the archer a genuine smile, gaze so very soft and happy.

“Mm, of course. Although, they would have been fine on your bed.” Hanzo replied, stifling a small yawn. He did know that Watatsumi would have been less than pleased though. At least now, the swelling was all but gone and his bruises were slowly fading. Although they were still very much there, just less painful after a few days of sleeping. The slight skin contact was noticed, but he made no comment on it. After all, it was just a slight touch. “I suppose I shall have to put these two to bed before I can join you.” Not that it would take that long, they’d just curl up on his pillow quite happily. Lazy little shits. 

Sadly for Jesse, the smile wasn’t returned, but the archer didn’t look angry for once. Just neutral. “I think before I join you, I am in need of a cup of coffee before we start.” It was going to take him a few more days yet to recover from all this and stop being so tired. “I will meet you out there soon.” With a small nod, he turned and slipped from the bedroom with the dragons snoring quietly on his shoulders.


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jesse gets an archery lesson.

With Hanzo gone, McCree got started on making himself look at least presentable, throwing on a different shirt and jeans, all that jazz. Of course, he was never complete without his BAMF belt and a serape, so those were inevitably thrown on too, the latter being that very same green colour as the one he had on yesterday. After somehow managing to tame his wild hair, Jesse topped it all off his with hat and decided to bring the Peacekeeper with him.

Once he felt like he was ready to head out to the training around the cowboy did a once over of his room, and- oh, Hanzo’s comforter was still there, kicked uselessly to the end of the bed. It must have come off sometime during the night, and while he was tempted to deliver it to him… Jesse instead shook his head and left. Maybe he could use it as an excuse to have Hanzo come to his room again, because he had to admit, the company was actually pretty pleasant when they weren’t fighting.

Hanzo had managed to make it to his own room unnoticed by the few who were already up and wandering around the base. How he would have explained coming out of the cowboy’s room in his pajamas would have been extremely awkward. Gently, he untangled the little dragons from his shoulders, laying them atop his pillow. He’d make sure to give them some sort of treat later, since without them, he’d probably still be locked in that room.

With them now snuggled together and snoring a little louder, the archer donned his usual garb, his hakama and short kimono. He took a red ribbon from the drawer where they were all neatly stored and fixed his hair, since the yellow one was going to Jesse. Why the cowboy had chosen that of all things, he still couldn’t figure out. Swapping out all of the special arrows for normal ones, he slung the quiver onto his back because an untrained man was dangerous enough with normal arrows, let alone a stray scatter.

Grabbing his bow, he tested the tension of the drawstring and slung it over his chest once he was satisfied that it was fine. Ignoring the pain of the string pressing against some of the still healing wounds, he left his room and made sure to stop by the kitchen. Coffee was something he didn’t drink a lot of, he preferred tea, but today he needed that extra caffeine boost. Taking the mug with him, he left the building and made his way out to the training area, Jesse’s bright green serape easy to spot. 

The man was leaning against a wall, lit cigar between his chapped lips. Hanzo joined him, sitting the half consumed beverage down onto one of the tables that sat next to Jesse. Being outside was beyond nice right now, the morning air was pleasantly cool but the soft warmth of the sun made it almost a perfect temperature. At least for Hanzo.

“Have you even ever held a bow?” He asked, sliding the weapon and quiver off himself, the latter resting against the table leg. Part of him wanted to show him how to hold it straight away… the other part just wanted to see how he went. He decided, the latter was the way to go and took an arrow from the quiver, offering both the weapon and ammunition to the cowboy.

“Once,” upon Hanzo’s arrival, Jesse took a long drag and pushed off the wall. The first time he’d ever held a bow was way back when, when Genji still had his original body. The green-haired ninja had insisted he give it a try. It definitely didn’t turn out how either of them had expected, but the previous experience didn’t stop him from acting confident. “I’m gonna impress ya’.”

Accepting both the bow and the arrow, Jesse gave him a quick nod and removed his hat, tossing it onto the table next to Hanzo’s coffee. Taking a gander at Hanzo’s bow, he could vaguely remember where to nock the arrow, but… When the cowboy went to do so, everything else was wrong, especially when he drew the string back, since it wasn’t as far as it should have been. His bionic arm was bent, metal digits in all the wrong positions and it looked utterly ridiculous. His flesh one wasn’t much better, elbow sticking out too far and fingers gripping the end of the arrow incorrectly.

“Then by all means, impress me.” The shorter man crossed his arms over his chest and lent against the wall. Feeling and acting a lot more like himself today, minus the huge amount of aggression he usually felt towards the cowboy. Watching as Jesse struggled to nock the arrow, he found himself cringing at the man’s awful, terrible, extremely wrong stance. If he wasn’t careful, he’d end up hurting himself. The draw string could really do some damage when the arrow was loosed. No, no, all wrong. 

Still, it was obvious Jesse was confident no matter how awkward his posture was, if one were to go by his grin. As expected, when he released the projectile after lining up with one of the stationary bots, it instead chose to go elsewhere; completely missing the mark. The cowboy pouted at the sight, looking between Hanzo and the arrow that had rather pathetically flopped to the ground. “Err…”

Sure, McCree may have had the confidence to pull it off, but that wasn’t going to help him even get the arrow near the target, let alone hit it. “If I said I was impressed,” the archer pushed off the wall, grabbed a second arrow and walked over to the brunette, “I would be lying.” Oh, that was mean but his tone was far from that. 

“Here, allow me to help you before you hurt yourself.” The arrow was held between his teeth as he took the man’s arms and adjusted their angles, his chest almost pressing against the gunslinger’s back. Next, he worked on Jesse’s hands, fixing their grip. He took the arrow from his mouth and set it in place. Once he was satisfied, he stepped away. “There. Now try again. Draw the string all the way back this time, right to your cheek. Hold your breath to steady your aim, have patience and allow yourself to line up the shot before you fire.”

Jesse pouted at that, but that, like Hanzo’s insult was far from serious. “Now that’s jus’ mean.” Although, Hanzo’s offer to help him, now that… that was quite the welcome surprise and he found himself surprisingly close to the archer. He was half tempted to go as far as leaning back, but Hanzo was already done and Jesse had not been paying attention to what he was doing at all, since he’d been too busy trying to peer back at him inconspicuously. 

“If you had not claimed you were going to impress me…” Hanzo let his words trail off, obviously teasing the man, even with his stoic facade. Hanzo knew it would take Jesse quite some time to get used to handling the bow. It was, after all, a completely different style of weapon compared to the Peacemaker. The older man just had the advantage of being trained in a variety of weapons and fighting styles growing up, both ranged and melee.

Even with all of the adjustments, Jesse’s posture hinted (more like screamed) at his inexperience with a bow, but at least it felt a hell of a lot more comfortably than before. Doing as he was told, the cowboy lifted his arms and drew the string back until it was directly next to his cheek. Inhaling and holding his breath, McCree took the time to line up the show, but his hold was far from steady and when he did finally release the arrow, it whizzed straight past the target. It was a little closer though. “Think yer’ gonna have’ta show me how to aim this thing.” Jesse lowered the bow again, exhaling loudly. Admittedly, if Hanzo ended up as close as he was before, then there’s no way the cowboy’s going to be able to pay attention to anything but him.

At least there was some improvement this time around, even if he was still standing and holding himself all wrong. “Yes, I agree. It may help.” Taking another arrow from the quiver, he took the bow back from Jesse. “Your stance was a little better this time, but watch how I hold myself. Like the Peacekeeper, the bow is an extension of your arm. Or in this case, arms.” Taking up his stance, he drew the arrow back and held it for Jesse to study. “Keeping your balance will assist in your accuracy, especially when you need to move while firing. Pay close attention to the angle my arms are at. You moved after I helped your stance before. You hold your left arm too low, it is important you are in the right position even when you release the arrow.” The arrow was loosed and it hit the target, almost dead centre.

This was… yeah, it was really nice. Even though Hanzo was calling Jesse out, it was a tease. Nothing like the incessant bickering and harmful jabs from before. Yet again, Hanzo had chosen to help him, two times in one day, to boot. Who’d have ever thought that was even possible? And now, Jesse even had an excuse to stare when the experienced archer took up the correct stance. Nodding twice, he crossed his arms, casually sauntering closer and ‘observing’ his arms which looked… damn, is the only word that came to mind.

Jesse hadn’t ever thought to look closely at Hanzo, but now that he was, it was hard to not let his eyes wander. What only seemed to add to the problem was how the man held himself as a whole; so very smooth in his movements. Once again though, it all ended too soon and Jesse caught himself staring after the demonstration, which quickly led him tearing his eyes away in case the other picked up on it. That would be a huge problem. “How th’ Hell d’ya remain so still, though? Ya’ make it look easy as pie.” 

Helping the cowboy was in turn helping to keep Hanzo’s mind off the last week. Not to mention that in his opinion, everyone should know how to use a range of weapons. That knowledge had saved his life many times, and as much as he and McCree had bickered in the past and probably would in the future, he didn’t want the man to die. As loud and as annoying as he could be, he was a loyal teammate who had proven more than once in the past he had Hanzo’s back if it came down to it. So, he’d teach him what he could, as a non-spoken thank you.

“Practice. Many hours a day of practice, every day for months. If not years. It is not about being rigid, so much as being still. Being still does not allow for fluid movements, especially if you need to move suddenly. It takes a lot of upper body strength, but all of that can come later. The first thing we need to do is to at least get you to hit the target.” He offered the bow to Jesse again, one brow raised in question. “Care to give it another try? I can alter your stance again if you so wish.”

Practice, of course. McCree snorted, taking the bow back with a nod. “I’m gonna hit it this time.” Puffing out his chest, the cowboy took the arrow that was passed over to him and faced the target, all too eager to impress. The worst part about all of this was the fact that he probably wouldn’t be able to impress Hanzo. Not for a long while at least, provided he kept on trying.

Hell, he’d even go as far as letting the Japanese man teach him, if he wished. That is, until he looked down at the bow and drew a blank about where his hands were supposed to go. Again. “So, err… Han? I think I’m gonna take that offer up.” Glancing at the archer with an apologetic grin, the brunette offered up an awkward laugh, although… inwardly he wasn’t sorry. Not even slightly.

“I am sure you will.” Woah, was that Hanzo being… supportive? Standing off to the side slightly, he watched as Jesse just sort of… stood there and looked all sorts of confused. “You forgot already?” He half scoffed lightly, rolling his eyes. “Alright then, allow me to remind you.” 

Once again, the shorter man moved to stand behind McCree and he made sure to set his stance better this time. He started by putting his hands on Jesse’s hips to fix his stance, realising he’d forgotten to do that last time. Oops. “You need to widen your stance slightly, one leg goes back here.” He used his foot to push Jesse’s leg back to give him a steadier stance, their bodies bumping together as Jesse’s leg moved.

He lent forward and once again, set Jesse’s hands and arms to their correct positions, his chest this time resting against the younger man’s back. He took his time to ensure Jesse had the highest chance to finally hit the target. “Third time is the charm.” He murmured as he stepped back, giving the taller man the once over. Yes, this looked much better. “Try now.”

Oh. Oooh. Jesse definitely got what he wanted when Hanzo returned to fix his stance. Just the hands on his hips had rendered the cowboy speechless, mouth gaping and attention fixed on the man who was touching him, despite usually being so against it. It only became more obvious after his leg was pushed back and they bumped together, Jesse swallowing hard. He did not expect this to happen. 

The distraction went to the highest level when the archer leaned forward and his chest came in contact with Jesse’s back, almost eliciting a curse from the brunette. Almost. He could feel how firm the archer was from that contact alone, and it took all the restraint he had to not just whirl around and use his hands to feel instead.

“Yep, sure is.” Somehow, the cowboy managed to pull himself together when Hanzo stepped back, still reveling in the afterthought that they had actually touched and the archer hadn’t tried to punch him. Attempting to return his focus to the bow at hand, Jesse frowned slightly, his mind only half where it should be.

He didn’t understand why all of that provoked such an urge from him, but now wasn’t the time to contemplate that. Drawing back the string once again, the cowboy remembered to hold his breath, bringing the arrow right back until it was at his cheek. He took a second to line up the shot, another to keep himself steady and he let the arrow go. It hit the target this time, but at the very edge. Still, it was good enough for Jesse’s lips to spread into a wide grin. “Yer’ a good teacher.” Not that McCree had been listening.

When he was teaching someone skills that could save their lives, Hanzo’s personal bubble issues were pushed aside, at least temporarily. After all, it was Hanzo’s choice to begin with, so that made it (mostly) okay. His personal space wasn’t being invaded and Jesse… he didn’t seem to have one of those. It was like everyone else’s personal bubble belonged to the cowboy, even if they didn’t want it.

The arrow thudded into the edge of the target, sure, it wasn’t even within the markers, but for a third try it was pretty good. He could have said something wise, something like Zenyatta would say; but he didn’t. “Perhaps we should get you your own bow, so you can practice on your own time.” He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. It wasn’t like Jesse would need anything like his Storm bow, just something basic for practice and it wouldn’t be hard to get his hands on. “Oh,” he dug his hand into one of the deep pockets of the hakama, pulling the yellow silk ribbon from within and offering it to Jesse, “here, before I forget. Your prize.”


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's the time for Lena's party!

The next couple of days passed by quickly, Hanzo’s wounds were healing fast and aside from the few that would leave scars, they were barely noticeable anymore. The archer and the cowboy had barely any fights at all, save the few times the raven-haired man had gotten bristly and snapped at the taller man. 

Today was the day of Lena’s long awaited party and to make sure the older Shimada didn’t stumble on their plans, he was sent off on errand after errand. Mostly meaningless tasks. Although, Jesse had a bad feeling about this, but no, Lena insisted they still have the party. Even Jack had somehow been dragged into it and was being ordered around by the Brit to set out glasses for everyone. Reinhardt was taking care of the food, setting it out on the table and Jesse? He’d been stuck with hanging a gigantic banner on a few hooks directly opposite the main entrance to the base, bright blue letters reading ‘WELCOME BACK’, which was decorated with an awful lot of glitter. That glitter, however, managed to wind up sticking to the cowboy’s clothes and hat, his hair safe until Tracer threw a jar full of the stuff all over him. “Aw, c’mon!” Needless to say, such a sight caused Lena (and a few of the others) to crack up at the now glittery cowboy.

Hanzo really didn’t mind being sent out on all these errands, it gave him some time alone. He and Jesse had been spending a lot more time together, although he had returned to sleeping in his own bed the night of Jesse’s archery training. Even if he barely slept, he really wasn’t ready to wake up snuggled against the loud American again. Not one bit. Although, he had to admit, his company was more tolerable now, most of the time.

One thing was really bothering him, everyone had been acting stranger than normal today. In fact, something had to be up because he’d been pestered to run small errands all day. He hadn’t even had a chance to set foot in the common room today, but whatever. Busy wasn’t so bad and the exercise was good, especially with one of his knees still acting up. Angela had taken a look at it and had told him to take it easy, but at the same time, not take it too easy. So, walking was the perfect exercise for it.

Finally reaching the store he’d been directed to, he stepped inside, eyeing the strange collection of nick- nacks that filled the shelving throughout the store. Lena had apparently ordered something for Emily and since she was busy with something, he’d been asked to go get it.

“We’re sorry, sir. That item isn’t in yet.” The omnic behind the counter shook his head. “The deliver was delayed due to unforeseen poor weather. We did contact Miss Oxton to let her know. She must have forgotten.”

It really wasn’t like Lena to forget things, especially when it came to Emily. “It is fine, thank you.” Leaving the counter, the archer took a few minutes to browse what they had, not that he was really into things like this. All they did was cause clutter and gather dust. Once he was done he left the store and headed home, the sun getting low on the horizon. They really had kept him busy all day.

Although, as he stepped into the base it seemed awfully quiet. Where was everyone? The lights were all off and as he padded through the halls, he found no one, anywhere, there was always some noise, especially at this time of the evening.It was as if they’d all just gone out somewhere. Hanzo’s over-wariness kicked in and he began to sweep the compound, but nothing was out of place, save for his missing comrades. There was no sign of forced entry, or fighting of any kind. Maybe they were in the common room being… strangely quiet.

“Shh!” Lena was on top of one of the couches, sitting in the darkness with a small remote in her hand which controlled the lights for the room. Everyone was laying in wait, submerged in utter darkness, spread across the space in various places. All the food had been bought out, covered with plastic lids on a table at the far end of the room. The fridge was filled to the brim with various types of alcohol, although Jesse had been pretty offended when he found out there was no beer in there. However, as it turned out, there were more than ample beer in another fridge since the first one had no room left. Speaking of the cowboy, he was no longer covered in glitter. Everyone had been convinced by the Brit to ‘surprise’ Hanzo by jumping up and shouting as he entered. She’d hit the lights at that very moment and since she’d noticed the two men hadn’t been fighting as much, Jesse had been assigned a spot close to the door.

Said door opened only a few moments later and since everyone else was in here, it was obvious who it was. Lena slammed the button on the remote, flooding the room with bright light and loud music began to play. Safe to say, Hanzo’s reaction was completely violent. Blinded temporarily by the bright lights and completely caught off guard by the screaming of “SURPRISE!” and the loud music, the ninja’s first reaction was to strike the closest body.

“Brother, no!” Genji had noticed, shouting at his sibling over the din, but it was too late. Hanzo struck and of course, poor ol’ Jesse copped it. The older man’s fist drove into his face with a whole lot more force than when their past arguments had gotten physical. That fist connected with Jesse’s face and he stumbled back, his hand shooting up to cup the tender area just below his eye socket, that fist had barely missed his nose.

The cyborg dashed forward and grabbed Hanzo’s arm before he could deliver a second blow, giving him a moment to calm down and realise exactly what was going on. His mouth fell open and he just stared for a moment, the others staring in shock at the scene before them. 

Yanking his arm away from Genji’s grip with a snarl, he shoved his sibling away from him roughly with a deep scowl on his face. Without even a word, he turned and stalked out of the room. Genji may have saved the cowboy from a second blow, but… the older man was angry and everyone else had been shocked into silence. “Hanzo!” Yet despite the rather brutal punch he’d just received, Jesse still closely followed after him straight out of the room and down the hall until he was met with a door slamming in his face, causing him to stumble back once again. Somehow, the gunslinger didn’t take the hint and opened the door, really not wanting to have to talk through it. “Hanzo, will ya’ jus’ listen to me for a sec?”

Hanzo hadn’t even realise Jesse had followed him back to his room, he was sitting on the edge of his bed, bristling and angry. Porcupine mode was activated big time. His head snapped up as the door opened and Jesse was met with a venomous glare. “Why should I listen to you?” He snapped, his hands balled at his sides. “You could have at least warned me!” Sure, he was a little sorry he’d hit Jesse, but what else dd they expect? “Did you all expect me to laugh and find it funny?” He could still hear the faint sound of the party music as it flowed through the hallways, his hands trembling. “I should have known, I knew something was going on.” Although a damned surprise party was not anything he would have thought they were planning. “Do not do that ever again. You were lucky Genji stopped me.” He really was, or else that nose of McCree’s would have been broken.

Jesse wasn’t going to back down, even if the angry porcupine bared it’s quills at him. He’d already stepped inside and had rather softly closed the door behind him. “Lena said she’d burn my last serape if I said anythin’.” Rather than snapping back at the angry archer, Jesse instead replied rather bluntly. It was probably adding fuel to the fire, but he wasn’t about to lie. Besides, she really did say that.

“Han, lemme explain. Lena jus’ wanted ta’ hold a party for yer’ return, an’ they all agreed to it. T’was s’posed ta’ be somethin’ nice you ya’- hell, they even went outta their way to buy that Japanese stuff ya’ like so much.” Carefully and slowly, the cowboy tried approaching, not wanting to anger Hanzo further and yet still not wanting to have to talk at such a distance. With how they’d been conversing recently it felt a little strange to be back on the end of the other’s anger again, especially when it came to being struck. Speaking of that, Jesse rubbed at his cheekbone, hissing softly at the sting. “Ya’ pack a mighty punch, yanno? Nearly knocked me off my feet back there.”

All of that information took a few minutes to soak in past those quills and he visibly relaxed, just a little. “I see.” In the end, it was a nice gesture, one he honestly hadn’t ever expected ever. He wasn’t really officially in Overwatch, he’d always kept this mental distance from them. After all, he still saw himself as just a mercenary they hired sometimes and paid him by giving him somewhere to stay. The silence was almost uncomfortable for him and he sighed, breaking it and dragging his palm over his face. “I apologise. I do not take to being surprised well.” Especially since his most recent surprise had him waking up in a dark room, cuffed to a chair. He pushed himself to his feet, perhaps some sake would settle his nerves and his mood. “Let us return to the party then, since it seemed everybody worked so hard on it.”


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The party goes on!

Before they left, Jesse spoke up. “Yer’ a part of our big family now, Han. Hence the party an’ everyone bein’ happy yer’ back safe an’ sound.” Although he hadn’t been expecting an apology from the archer and the cowboy was rather taken aback, he made it clearly obvious by displaying it on his face.

At least Hanzo was willing to come back and join the others, that was a huge improvement from his he might have acted at some other point in time. As the shorter man stood up, Jesse set his hand on his shoulder for a fleeting moment after moving a little closer, not wanting to aggravate the man anymore. “Jus’ don’t push yer’self, a’ight? No one in there wants ta’ make things difficult for ya’, so if ya’ need to leave, go ahead.” Although he never said he wouldn’t follow him if he decided to leave.

Hanzo had never even really considered that was how he was seen by the others now. It felt… nice to have a family again (not counting his annoying brother). Even if most of them drove him up the wall, but then again… his family back in Japan had had a similar effect.

The two left the archer’s bedroom and went back to the party, that had quite happily continued on even without them there. That was fine by Hanzo, it meant he hadn’t ruined their fun completely and the next several hours passed by faster than he’d expected. Snacks and alcohol were consumed by everyone in large quantities, although as usual, Hanzo had opted to sit away to the side. It was quieter over here for starters. Lena and Hana had both bugged him several times to come and dance, but he’d flatly declined. 

Every time the girls merely shrugged, told him it was ‘his loss’ and had gone off to dance with those who were willing. On the other hand, Jesse had spent a great deal of the night getting utterly wasted. He’d through at least seven beers, a few swigs of sake (which wasn’t as bad as he thought it was) and a hell of a lot of food. The cowboy was also the second one to join in on all the dancing, clearly intoxicated if his extremely touchy-feely actions were anything to go by. Not to mention all of the ridiculous sexual humour, terrible puns and random flirting. 

It wasn’t long after midnight by the time the party wound down, Lena and Emily had vanished a while ago. Winston was taking up one of the couches, passed out and snoring loudly. Jack had gone to bed a while ago and Hanzo had allowed himself to indulge a little tonight. The sake had flowed well and if he had to admit it, he was having fun. For the last half an hour at least, he and Genji had been sitting together. Just talking. No animosity, no bitterness, just good conversation. Although, Hanzo had been, for whatever reason, half watching Jesse for the entire night. The drunker the man got, the more ridiculous he got. The archer was almost embarrassed for him, especially as he attempted to dance and did a terrible job.

One could say Jesse was a terrible drunk and his next target was… aha! Jesse turned his body, stumbling every now and again as he wandered towards the two Shimada brothers, hand already risen as a greeting. “Weeeeeeeell now, ain’t this nice ya’ shee?” Oh, did I mention the drunken slurs yet?

Hanzo had stopped mid word as Jesse turned his attention to them, Genji followed his glance to see the cowboy stumbling over to them with a lopsided grin on his face. “Jesse, how are you still upright?” He asked with a laugh, waving in return.

The archer didn’t laugh (at least not on the outside), although the sight was pretty amusing once you got past the second hand embarrassment. “Perhaps all of the food he consumed has weighed him down so he cannot fall.” He raised a brow up at the man, “What is it you need? There is no more sake for you.” 

Jesse batted Genji’s comment off like it was nothing. “High tolerance.” Apparently though, it wasn’t high enough. He shot a mockery of a frown at Hanzo and crossed his arms, huffing. “I ain’t fat.” Of course he took it the wrong way in his current state, but the archer’s next question had him grinning from ear to ear. “Yer’ company’s ‘nuff for me, darlin’.” There it came, the flirting. The awful, yet somehow smooth flirting that Jesse had been hand delivering to everyone else. Now, it was Hanzo’s turn.

“I said nothing of the sort.” Hanzo replied with a petulant snort, which was quickly followed by the raven-haired man pressing his palms against his face. Oh no. Nope. Not this. Nope. He’d been at this all night with anyone he could talk at. “Jesse… how about we get you to bed?” He offered, hoping to stop this before the cowboy really got started. “You are looking quite tired.” He looked sideways at his brother, eyes silently begging him to help.

At first, Genji had zero intention of helping Hanzo at first, but almost everyone else was sleeping, so it was probably a good idea. “Mm, Hanzo’s right,” he nodded, “you can talk to him more tomorrow, after you both wake up. Fair?” 

“Only if ya’ sleep with me.” Jesse winked, oh God he winked and followed that up by waggling his eyebrows rather suggestively at Hanzo. “Fine.” But he was going to get Hanzo to sleep in his bed again, because that was nice. 

The brothers were already on their feet, Hanzo’s face flushing brightly at that suggestion. He made all manner of unimpressed sounds, whilst Genji just burst into laughter which he stifled quickly as to not wake the others. The cyborg embraced the drunken cowboy, his mouth next to the man’s ear. “I dare you to kiss him.” He’d seen how Jesse had been looking at Hanzo lately, there was no mistaking that look. Plus, it’d be damn funny. “Goodnight Jesse.” He spoke at a normal tone before breaking the friendly embrace.

“Come on, Jesse, before you fall down and sleep on the floor.” Although, Hanzo knew that even if that happened, it wouldn’t have been the first time Jesse had used the floor as a bed. Hanzo had completely missed that whisper and that look, his gaze elsewhere for that moment.

At least the cowboy was an easily convinced drunk, the cowboy whistled at the little suggestion in his ear. He gave the cyborg a look at said ‘yer’ on’ once the embrace was broken. Returning his attention to the older Shimada, Jesse huffed again, but gave a short nod. “A’ight, lead the way.” Or more like, drag him alone because there was no way he’d remain focused enough to reach his room.

“Good night, Genji. Come, Jesse.” He started to walk out of the room and realised he wasn’t being followed, with a sigh, he returned to the cowboy and grabbed the man’s sleeve to lead him like, well, a drunk. He led the man through the halls to his bedroom. He opened the door and pulled Jesse inside, gesturing toward his (still) unmade bed.

McCree almost felt like a puppy being led to his destination, to an extent. However, he hadn’t forgotten about that little dare and half cursed himself for not asking for a reward. But no matter, he supposed it was reward enough even if he got to kiss the archer. Which he did, quite suddenly and right on the lips after he whirled around suddenly and grabbed Hanzo by the shoulders. 

After planting said kiss to the shorter man’s lips, Jesse lingered quite closer to his face for a slightly longer time than necessary. He pulled away completely, grinning brightly and giving Hanzo a mock salute. “It’s a good night kiss. Now I hope ya’ had some fun, darlin’, cus’ I sure did.” 

The archer had literally no chance to realise what was going on, nor did he get the chance to stop it. His eyes widened as Jesse kissed him and as the taller man pulled away, Hanzo’s eyes narrowed. Quickly. It seemed the porcupine was back. “I had _some_ fun, yes.” Although his flat, tense, irate tone didn’t reflect that. His hands raised and he shoved Jesse away from him, rather forcefully toward his bed. Without another word, Hanzo stalked from the room, rather displeased.


	17. Chapter 17

By the time people awoke the next morning (sans those who were lucky enough to sleep off their hangovers), Hanzo was nowhere to be seen. His room still had pretty much everything in it, his beloved bow was unstrung and resting in it’s case, the quiver leaning against the bookshelf. He hadn’t left a note or a message with anyone. It seemed he’d been gone even before the earliest risers.

Sure, it wasn’t the first time he’d gone out without a word, but unlike those days, he wasn’t back by the time people were ready for bed. As expected people started to get worried. For Jesse, the next three days were excruciating, he’d woken up with the biggest hangover he’d had in a while, his head thumping and torturous guilt washing through him. He could remember every last thing he’d done last night, from the words to the actions to kissing Hanzo because of some stupid little dare. 

But when the cowboy had gone to apologise, even with his headache and abnormal dizziness, the archer wasn’t even there and not a single person knew where he’d gone. It shouldn’t really be necessary to mention that Jesse took it poorly. Very poorly. To the point where he’d started to blame himself for the man’s disappearance. 

It only seemed to get worse as the time went on, Winston mentioned he wasn’t in any danger according to the microchip embedded in his arm, but that didn’t help matters in the slightest. Everyone was growing worries, including McCree and especially because of what had happened not too long ago to the archer. Jesse had been hoping the older man would come back and his frequent visits to Hanzo’s room showed that. He’d done so many on the first day, every hour. The second and third days were hardly any different.

However, by midday on the fourth day, Jesse was on his way for another visit. Expecting the room to once again be empty, Jesse felt his heart stop as he spotted the door that was normally closed, had been left ajar. In a matter of seconds, he was over there, almost throwing it open and coming to the sight of-

“Hanzo?” Jesse recognised who he saw, but this man was different. So very different to the archer he’d come to know.

The older Shimada had completely changed his appearance. Gone was the shoulder length hair tied back in a short ponytail, and gone were the grey hairs at the sides of his head. In fact, the sides and back of his head were completely shaved. A wide strip remained atop his head, tied back into a little bun and a single bang hung down over the side of his face. 

The bridge of his nose was pierced with a silver barbell and both his earlobes were also sporting a small metal hoop in each lobe. Even his clothing was completely different. He’d been unpacking the rucksack that sat on his bed, his old clothes and a collection of newer ones. He’d decided that perhaps a change would be just the thing to help him move on past everything, but it hadn’t. Although, he did feel refreshed (if not a bit self conscious, but that’d fade) by his new image.

As his door was pushed open, the archer stood upright, nodding in response, noting McCree’s expression which seemed to be a combination of relieved and confused. “Hello, Jesse. I thought I would unpack before I came to announce my return.” It hadn’t really occurred to him that people might have worried about him, but he’d made this decision when he was still a little drunk. 

Relived and confused was an understatement when it came to the cowboy’s expression. Jesse was blatantly staring, his brain still in the hallway and taking it’s sweet time to catch up to him. After a few solid seconds, the cowboy felt his jaw drop, relief finally winning the war and taking over his expression. “Hanzo…?” Repeating that very same one word question, Jesse quickly recovered and closed his mouth, brow furrowing. “Yer’… back.” And the way Hanzo seemed completely fine, like that kiss the other night didn’t happen… the cowboy just didn’t understand why he hadn’t been told to get out yet.

“Look I- about what happened after the party…” The brunette trailed off, trying to put it all into words. “I’m sorry, Han.” He hadn’t even thought to register the new changes in the other’s appearance yet, because right now, to him, this was something far more important and needed to be taken care of first.

Apparently his disappearance had really affected the cowboy big time, if all that staring was anything to go by. “Yes, and yes. Did you expect me to be gone forever? I did leave everything here after all.” McCree was really acting weird right now, what was going on with him? Oh, he was still hung up on that? Sure, the archer had been for the first day but he’d let it go. Too bad he couldn’t do that with _other_ things. “You were drunk, stupid things happen,” that probably came out a little harsher than intended, “I honestly did not even expect you to remember.”

 _Hanzo_ just brush it off. Out of everyone, _Hanzo_. Jesse wouldn’t be able to even fathom such a thing no matter how long he was given to ponder it. Although, by the archer’s words, was the gunslinger right to assume that he’d been… forgiven? “Would ya’ mind tellin’ someone before ya’ go disappearin’ like that?” Well, either way, Hanzo wasn’t angry at him for it and that meant his little disappearing act wasn’t because of him either… Wait. _Wait just one minute_. Now that was all out of the way and his worries had been addressed, the cowboy took a good look at the man in front of him and his new appearance, and… _Hot damn_. Now, don’t get Jesse wrong, Hanzo’s appearance before, it was nice too. He was easy on the eyes before, but this? This took it to a whole new level. “Han, are those _piercings_?”

Jesse’s theory was correct. For once, Hanzo wasn’t going to hold on to his anger over something for too long. “I would have mentioned it to you, if I had not just… It was a spur of the moment decision. You were already passed out, as was almost everybody else. I left not even an hour after I left your room.” He should have left a note, sure, but the urge to suddenly go and do this had been stronger.

As Jesse scrutinised him, the archer shifted a little awkwardly, one hand raising to the left loop in his ear. “Yes, they are and before you ask, no, they are not fake ones.” He hadn’t _intended_ to get pierced, but the place he’d gone to had recommended it, so, he’d just gone ahead with it. It was, by far, the most drastic change to his appearance ever. Hanzo coughed into his hand, trying to cover the awkwardness and the… _wait_ was he blushing a little? “So, Jesse… Do you like it?”

“That soon?” McCree just… what? Since when did Hanzo act so impulsively? Well, since three days ago, apparently. “Hey now, who says I was gonna ask that?” Jesse honestly would have, more-so because this was just so surreal and he half beloved he was imagining things. …Okay, fine. More than half. Four fifths. “Do I like it? Darlin’, no, I don’t like it. I love it. It suits ya’ a whole lot.” The cowboy’s words rolled off his tongue so damn quickly and easily, and that slight blush? That just spurred him on. 

Hanzo look ridiculously good, and if he wasn’t in his right mind, well… “I almost wanna keep ya’ all ta’ myself.” Fuck it, he really wasn’t, especially with the other’s disappearance and all his own self-blame. So just this one, he flirted. With Hanzo, and with no shame. At all.

It really was once in a blue moon when Hanzo acted completely on impulse, although this time had been mostly spurred by his sheer _need_ to try something to avoid having to _talk_ about his issues. “Why do I think that? Because of the way you are staring at me and the tone in your voice.” The incoming barrage of compliments though, sure, he expected something but nothing to that extent. Not at all. He could feel his cheeks warming again so he turned and continued to unpack his bag while Jesse just _kept going_.

Once the flirting was done, Hanzo decided it was time to change the topic. Quickly. “I was thinking that perhaps once I am done here, we can take a trip into town.” He’d gone further than the nearby town, but there was somewhere in the local area he intended on going to. “Perhaps we can get you a simple recurve bow, that way you can practice archery on your own time There is a… store, that we can go to.” A Black Market store, but a store nonetheless.

The reaction to the cowboy’s compliments were quite satisfying indeed, and Jesse bore holes into the other’s back as he turned. If only Hanzo hadn’t completely hidden himself, Jesse would’ve liked to see that blush a little more. “That almost sounded like ya’ wanted to ask me out on a date. Sounds like a plan.” It really did sound like an invitation and hell, it could be one. The cowboy had to admit, he wouldn’t mind being able to spend some more time with the man. “Has anyone else seen ya’ yet?”

That blush (that wasn’t so little anymore) would have been way more obvious if Hanzo hadn’t turned away. He really wasn’t completely sure why he wasn’t minding the complements right now, usually he’d have gotten prickly and mad. Now? He was blushing and awkward. He kept unpacking, putting the clothes in their spots neatly, only pausing when Jesse mentioned the word ‘date’. 

“A date? I do not think traveling to a Black Market store to purchase a weapon is a very good date.” Really, weren’t dates meant to be romantic? It had been far too long since he’d been on one. Back before he’d tried to kill Genji, in fact. “No, you are the first. I was amazed I made it to my room without harassment. I suppose it would be wise to go see them before we go, so they know I am home again and I am okay.”

“I’ve been on worse dates,” Jesse shrugged, finally noticing his surroundings. The room was… rather bare. The cowboy had half expected to see some sort of Japanese scroll mounted on the wall or something, like Genji had in his room. But then again, they were two completely different people. One eyebrow shot up however, when he realised what Hanzo had actually said. “Black Market? Now that ain’t somethin’ I was expectin’.” For some reason, being the only one who had seen the archer like this was… satisfying. Immensely so. “Nah, they’ll be fine.” Cutting in rather quickly, the cowboy knew he was being rather foolish, but hell, if he could, he’d like to keep the man to himself, if only for a little longer.

“I am sure that is a fascinating tale.” There wasn’t any sarcasm in the archer’s voice as he spoke. “Maybe you can tell me about it one day.” Really, he didn’t mind listening to anecdotes or tales about people, as long as they weren’t boring. It helped him get to know people without having to getting too close to them emotionally. He was surprised at Jesse’s reaction to his mention of the Black Market, it seemed Genji hadn’t mentioned their abandoned legacy to the cowboy and it wasn’t like he could just take that back right now. “The Shimada Clan are not good people, Jesse. We are assassins, murderers. We were a vast empire that traded in all manner of things illegal and dangerous. The Black Market was a large part of that. I…” he paused and sighed, “I was to lead the Clan after our father died.” He stopped himself, not willing to go any further willingly because that road led to heartache and terrible memories.

“Ya’ actually wanna hear ‘bout it?” Well, well, well. Who knew Hanzo enjoyed listening to those sorts of things? Too bad McCree was wrong in that regard. 

“Why else do you think I sit back on my own when everybody else is sharing tales? I can learn a lot more about you all at once in this manner.” Also, it meant he wasn’t obligated into sharing tales of his own.

When the archer got to explaining, Jesse broke off his incessant stare to could have probably dug craters in the other’s back by now. “Well, shit.” Genji had barely mentioned it, back when he wasn’t a full member of Overwatch and had his original body, the Sparrow had always avoided that topic. Jesse knew better than to ask about it of course, but to hear it? The cowboy rather awkwardly took a spot against the nearest wall. “Sounds like I stepped in a land-mine, sorry ‘bout that.”

Now that he was done unpacking, he set the bag away in the back of his wardrobe, glancing over at the cowboy, shaking his head. “You were not to know, do not worry about it.” Really, he couldn’t get mad at something like that, especially since Jesse didn’t push the subject. He walked over to the taller man and set a hand on his shoulder. “Come, let us go then. The sooner we get there, the sooner you can choose your new weapon.”

“I… yeah, guess that makes sense.” Jesse supposed it was a good way of doing it if one didn’t want to get too involved, not to mention smart. The cowboy had come to expect that sort of thing from the archer. When Hanzo approached, Jesse blinked at the hand on his shoulder. He didn’t comment though, he just nodded in response. “Yer’ gonna hafta’ lead the way,” he grinned, but not before taking a good, long look at his face. Letting off a high pitched whistle of appreciation, the cowboy hummed. “Even up close ya’ look damn good. Ya’ gonna hafta’ tell me what place ya’ went to for all that, they did a good job on ya’.” An extremely good one, especially since he doubted Hanzo would have had a look in mind when he went there, which means they had to improvise.

Jesse would find Hanzo’s hand moving from his shoulder to press the palm against his face as the older man couldn’t hold back _another_ damn blush. Dammit, he hadn’t been expecting Jesse to gush at him again. “Come, let us go.” Not that the store would close for hours yet, but because he had to say something to get away from this mass of compliments the gunslinger was throwing at him.


	18. Chapter 18

Hanzo led Jesse from Overwatch’s compound out to the garage, a stroke of luck allowing them to not even run into anyone else on the way out. Since the sky was darkening, looking gloomy and somewhat threatening to rain sooner rather than later, they took one of the cars. It was about a fifteen minute drive to the open air marketplace, which was currently pretty quiet. Stalls were lined up in the middle, the outside of the marketplace surrounded by stores with the doorways facing toward the centre.

“Please, do not mention this place to anyone. I cannot imagine Jack being at all impressed if he got wind of it.” Hanzo shoved the keys into one of his pockets and headed off through the market, winding through the paths of the large free-standing stands until they reached the far side.

Jesse was certainly happy that everybody had to yet discover Hanzo, keeping himself from revealing how abnormally pleased he was about it. “My lips are sealed.” The cowboy pressed a finger to his own lips, evidently happy and followed the archer wherever he went, trying quite hard to not wander off and window shop. There were a lot of knick knacks here and there, knock off jewelry, even some flower stands and _did he just see a movie about cowboys back there?_. He’s definitely going to get that on the way out. Although so far, nothing here seemed truly like Black Market material.

Leading the cowboy into an unassuming shop that sold all sorts of sweets and snacks, Hanzo nodded a greeting to the middle-aged woman who tended the counter. He’d known her for years now and she gave the cowboy a smile as the two men passed through the ‘staff only’ door into the back of the store. Jesse’s mouth was watering at the sight of all the sweets, not even aware that the entry was here until Hanzo stepped through the staff door.

This door led through to a kitchen/staff area, a door on the right was guarded by tall, strong-looking, armed men who were familiar with the Shimada and opened the door to allow the men to descend to the well-lit, sizable basement. Hanging on the walls and on display in locked cabinets were all manner of weapons and armour. Everything from daggers and swords, to all manner of guns large and small. The archer turned to face Jesse, gesturing to the room. “Feel free to look around, I need to put in a restock order for my arrows before we get your bow.”

The first thing Jesse did once they stepped into the basement was whistle. There were _so many weapons_ and to be frank, he’d only seen such a large quantity only once or twice in his life. “Gotcha,” Jesse didn’t even look at Hanzo, no way- he was too busy scoping out a golden desert eagle that had caught his eye, finding it damn near _attractive _.__

__Hanzo chatted, or rather, was chatted at by a rather tall, lanky Indian man who was very animated as he spoke. The man was an archer himself and was the first to get his hands on new and better stock as soon as it became available. As Hanzo set about filling out the order form for what he wanted, another man came down into the underground store. His clothing was obviously expensive and well-kept, a black tailored suit with a familiar double dragon motif embroidered on the left lapel._ _

__The Japanese man stopped at the bottom of the stairs, giving the shop a once-over, his eyes narrowing slightly in distaste at the sight of the cowboy and the man at the counter on the other side of the space. He was alone, his bodyguard detail wasn’t far away though, waiting in the room at the top of the stairs lest they be needed._ _

__Said man’s gaze continued to hover over the one at the counter, finding that back to the oddly familiar. He brushed it off shortly after, since he had met plenty of people in the past and present and there would be more in the future. It would hardly surprise him if it was someone whom he’d done business with at some point. With his eyes still narrowed as he passed by that mockery of a cowboy, he scoffed, shaking his head in utter _disgust_. Westerners and their ridiculous get-ups have never ceased to amaze him._ _

__His current destination was that very same counter that the familiar man was at and he approached it slowly, with practiced, light footsteps. Although, the closer he got, the more familiar said person appeared to be, well-hidden suspicion bubbling up until he caught a glimpse of their face. Hanzo’s face. His son. His flesh and blood. The one who _betrayed_ the clan. _ _

__His pace picked up, still so very quiet and he furrowed his brows, stopping just off to the side where he could see him so very clearly. Piercings and all. “ _Hanzo?_ Is this- Is _this_ what you have _done with yourself_ all of these years?” His tone was sharp, venomous even and it was laced with borderline disgust, anger and shame all in one._ _

__Once Hanzo was done with his order, he’d started to inquire about a simple recurve bow suitable for a beginner. Although, their conversation was interrupted quite rudely by a voice that made the archer’s blood run _cold_. At first, he wondered if he was hearing things, but as he raised his head, the colour drained from his face as he found himself face to face with his _father_. Another family member back from the dead. That tone was one he had known growing up, but that look on the man’s weathered features? Hanzo would have gladly crawled under a rock to avoid that._ _

__Although the intended effect to make him feel ashamed wore off, quickly. Hanzo’s back straightened and the colour came back to his face, a rush of rage that turned his face red. “ _Otou-san_!? _Nani!?_ You’re meant to be _dead!_ ”_ _

__What the hell was going on? He and Genji had both attended their father’s funeral. They’d seen the body, it had been a massive heart attack… They’d buried him and mourned his loss. He had _almost killed his brother_ to prove he was worth to lead the Clan and deal with those that would put them in jeopardy not six months after the funeral. His head was spinning so bad he physically reeled back against the counter, just staring._ _

__Sojiro shook his head, now able to see the full extend of Hanzo’s… atrocious appearance. “That was a test, to decide whether you were truly fit to lead. But as was decided by your actions, you could not. Now look at what you have done to yourself.” He gestured to the clothes, the hair, the piercings… everything, and he scowled. “I would have thought that you would have at least preserved what dignity you had left, but I see now that was a foolish thought.”_ _

__On the other side of the room, a certain cowboy had picked up on the abnormally hostile conversation going on back at that counter. When he looked over and saw Hanzo and a foreign, yet important looking older man, he quickly made his approach. Something was wrong, and Jesse knew it._ _

__The anger Hanzo had, now that ran in the family. His father was just as bad, if not worse. Looking at him the way he was now just seemed to add fuel to the fire that was already blazing, his own face reddening much like his son’s. “Betraying the Shimada Clan was the worst thing that you could have done, after everything I have taught you.” The man most certainly noticed the person in the disturbingly bright green serape getting closer and closer, but chose to ignore his existence in favour or belittling his son- no. Hanzo was not his son. Not anymore._ _

__“A test!?” Hanzo’s hands were balled tightly into fists at his sides, the knuckles already turning white. “They made me _kill my brother_ for a test?!” He and his father had often been at odds as the boy grew up, but he never imagined he’d go so far as this. “I have _no_ dignity left, _father_ ,” he spat the word, “you ensured that when I drove my sword through Genji’s chest!” The whole store was deathly quiet, watching the two men in their screaming match, ready to call for stronger men to deal with these two if it came to it. “I did not betray my family. My family betrayed both of their sons. You _dare_ try to put all of this blame on me?!”_ _

__“You have turned into a disappointment, just like your brother. I regret allowing your mother to give birth to the both of you, for you have merely spat on all that I have given you back in my face.”_ _

__That was right when McCree stepped in, however, having heard all of it in such clarity. The cowboy was absolutely fuming and the utter hatred on his face, it was real and it was not to be taken lightly._ _

__Those words, the sheer fact his father voiced regretted even _having_ sons was the last straw. He’d held himself back long enough. “You bastard!”_ _

__The only thing that stopped Hanzo from lunging forward and wrapping his hands around his father’s throat was Jesse, who had suddenly intervened. “What do ya’ say tah leavin’ Han alone an’ skedaddlin’ outta’ ‘ere ‘fore I help with that?”_ _

__“Jesse. Get out of the way.” Hanzo growled, his teeth grinding together. “This has _nothing_ to do with you.”_ _

__“I don’t _care_ if it’s nothin’ tah do with me, Hanzo.” Nobody walks up to someone close (can he even call it that?) to him and abuses them like that when Jesse’s around. No way. He won’t stand for it. _ _

__“I agree, move aside. Aren’t you a little _late_ for Halloween? It is November, the time for silly costumes is _over_.” Sojiro shot Jesse a very disapproving glare._ _

__The cowboy on the other hand didn’t even bat an eyelid at the insult. He’d received plenty before and he knew he’d keep receiving them. “We’re leavin’” Hanzo was angry, Jesse was angry, the old man was angry and that is not a good mix. Whirling around on his heels, the cowboy’s hand shot out and grabbed the archer by the wrist, yanking him rather powerfully away from the man without a second thought._ _

__Jesse had the right idea and the right timing, because if he hadn’t started to drag Hanzo out of the weapon filled room, it would have become pretty obvious what would have happened with two assassins at each other’s throats. One of them would have been left dead on the floor. Hanzo resisted that grip, but Jesse had had the foresight to use his bionic arm to wrestle the archer away from his father. He even tried digging his heels into the ground, which really was for the best, because getting banned from where he got his arrows from at a good price would be something he would have regretted._ _

__The older man watched them go without a word. Hanzo was no longer worth the effort, and that cowboy wasn’t very enjoyable to look at. So, instead, he turned to face elsewhere and carried on with his business._ _

__Jesse had managed to drag Hanzo all the way back to the car, but the archer had the keys and he stabbed his hand into his pocket to retrieve them. “Get. In.”_ _


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapters will be coming very slow now, although a side-fic connected to this one will be posted soon!

Hesitating, Jesse got into the passenger seat of the car. His protests and concerns about Hanzo driving right now were completely and utterly ignored. The archer started the car, not giving a rats arse about the cowboy’s worries and Jesse braced himself for the most terrifying ride of his life. He wasn’t exaggerating either. The car sped through the traffic, Hanzo’s hands white-knuckle tight on the wheel as the vehicle jolted and swerved as they weaved through the traffic.

It had started to rain not long after they got into the car, distant flashes of lightning and rumbles of thunder signaling an oncoming storm. The brunette constantly babbled about how dangerous this was and that Hanzo needed to slow down, but his words were ignored, their safety thrown into jeopardy by his anger. Yet, somehow, after God knows how long that car ride from Hell took, they arrived back at the compound. Jesse had been close to throwing himself out of the car every time there was a close call, but now they were safe and as Hanzo got out of the car, he looked like he was about to murder a kitten.

Slamming the door behind him, Hanzo didn’t even wait for Jesse, he stormed through the rain, beyond mad right now. As he stepped inside, he was spotted by Hana who cheerfully greeted him and skipped over to him, only to be roughly knocked aside as the archer walked past. Of course his destination was his room, he slammed the door loudly behind him, leaving those who witnessed that to stare at Jesse for answers.

The cowboy had rather regretfully tailed the older man when he stormed off, giving Hana an apologetic grin as she recovered from being knocked aside. The reason for his tail being regretful, however, was the door slammed in his face. Again. But the archer was angry, so angry that Genji would definitely made that waffle joke about his brother just like he’d tried with Jack. That had the cowboy thinking twice about trying to enter while he was in such a state. So, turning around and spotted the little crowd that was blatantly staring at him, he gave his neck an awkward scratch. “Hey, uuh, Genji? Can I talk to ya’ for just a sec? Somewhere private.”

Genji looked from his brother’s closed door to Jesse who looked… awkward? Curious, and never one to say no to his friend, the Sparrow nodded and slid through the crowd who were all just as curious as he was. It couldn’t be good, since McCree wanted to talk in private. “Of course, let’s go to my room.” He beckoned the cowboy to follow him and the two slipped into his room. The younger Shimada decided to lock his door to stop people bursting in and demanding answers. They’d get them in time no doubt. 

Jesse nodded and followed close behind. It would be bad to talk about anything that happened in front of everyone. In fact he shouldn’t say anything at all, not unless Hanzo gave the okay. Doing so would no doubt anger him further and besides, it was the archer’s issue, not his own, and he just couldn’t just go about telling everyone something so… so _private._ Jesse certainly wouldn’t like it, so there was no way a man like Hanzo would, even if it was his own brother. The gunslinger still wasn’t truly sure _who_ that man was. He had his doubts, although if he was to go by the words used then… that was the Shimada head- Hanzo and Genji’s _father_ , right?

He turned to look at Jesse, the faceplate currently off as it was when he was relaxing. “Jesse, what happened? Hanzo looked… I don’t think I’ve seen him that angry since we were younger.”

The cowboy slid his hat from his head and combed his fingers through the brown strands with the other. “That’s, err… somethin’ ya’ gonna hafta’ find out yerself,” but that didn’t mean he’d asked to talk to Genji for no reason. “I jus’ wanted to know if ya’ remember anythin’ that’ll help him calm down. He almost got us killed in the car when we were drivin’ back, an’ I’d hate tah see ‘im walk ‘round in such a volatile state around the others.” Jesse just asked for them to talk in _private_ because he didn’t want to risk people trying to butt in and ask questions. Besides, it wasn’t as if the cowboy hadn’t been affected by that whole scene. He was angry at that bastard from what he’d heard and he was worried about Hanzo’s state of mind.

Concern quickly made itself known across the cyborg’s face when Jesse refused to tell him what had upset his sibling so much. He glanced toward the direction of Hanzo’s room a moment before looking back to McCree. If his bother had been so reckless as to endanger both their lives, then it had to be something _big_ and his concern only grew. He knew he’d have to confront his brother about this and really, Genji had no idea how to calm him down right now. “He’ll calm down on his own,” hopefully, “the last time he was like this, he just broke everything in sight until he wore himself out. It might be wise to check on him in a little bit, give him some time to just… do his thing. I’m sure he’ll be fine.”

Jesse only seemed to frown even more. “On his own? I-” No, Genji was right. No matter how much he might want to help, the best thing he could do was leave him to sort it out himself. After all, Hanzo doesn’t confide easily and neither does Genji, although the latter seems to have grown out of that mindset a little. “…A’ight, I trust yer’ judgement.”

The green ninja sighed, the sound somewhat sad. “I just wish he would take some lessons with Zenyatta. He’s just so stubborn and keeps refusing. It helped me so much and I know it’d do the same for him.” Crossing his arms over his chest, he moved to the window, glancing at the incoming storm for a few moments before turning back to Jesse. “The last time I saw Hanzo this upset was when we were teenagers… He almost killed father back then and he would have left home if mother and I didn’t stop him. It was awful for days, father and him avoided each other and refused to talk even if they were in the same room. Everything was so tense and then Hanzo just left. He was gone for weeks, no one could even find him.” He’d tried, but hadn’t found any signs. It was as if his older brother had just vanished. “When he came back though, he was different. Sadder, quicker to anger and far more withdrawn. He threw himself into his training and lessons every day after that. Father was harder on him as well, pushing him harder and harder because father wanted him to give up. To fail. But, Hanzo didn’t do either, he just improved as time went on.”

Jesse’s hold on his hat tightened, expression darkening. Did Genji just realise he’d hit the nail on the head, talking about Hanzo and their father fighting? “Do ya’ know why he wanted Han to fail so bad?” And not to mention how downright disturbing that was to listen to. A man that was supposed to be their father just kept on trying to derail Hanzo? Shit, Jesse didn’t want to know how the man acted towards the now-cyborg if that was the case. Returning his hat to his head, the cowboy settled against the wall, arms crossing over his chest and head tipping downward so that the brim would hide his face to a degree.

Genji let out a _long_ sigh, he nodded and moved to sit on the edge of his bed, his hands in his lap and he gaze on Jesse. “I do, yes. I… guess I can tell you, it might even help you understand why he is the way he is sometimes.” He was unsure how much Jesse knew, but if he knew his older brother, it was as little as possible. If anything at all. “Hanzo was under a lot of pressure from a very young age. We both were, but him more so since he was the eldest. Father had him groomed from as early as mother would allow, shaping him, hardening him to become the next head of the Clan. Not long after his sixteenth birthday, he made a friend. His first, not counting myself. He was just one of the many servants we had. Anyway, they grew close, as friends do.” He smiled a little, but it faded. “But over time, they grew closer, I didn’t know until about a year later. Hanzo came home one day and he was a complete mess. He told me then that he was in love with his best friend, but that wasn’t the end of it. Father had somehow found out about them and well… organised an ‘accident’. Hanzo had been there at the time and seen it all. He was so angry that he hunted father down and tried to kill him for what he did. He failed, of course.” He got to his feet and moved to lean against the wall, next to Jesse. “I still don’t know why he came back after all of that. I guess, he wanted to prove something? That was when he vanished and after he came back, he started to resent me. A lot. I got to live my own life. I went to the arcade with my friends, I dated and got into trouble having fun… everything he didn’t because he had duties. So… yeah, that’s it.”

Listening quietly until the younger Shimada was finished, Jesse only seemed to grow darker, jaw clenched. “Explains a bunch.” Why Hanzo was so damn strict, why he didn’t like to confide in people, why he wasn’t particularly fond of Genji (that was jealously, wasn’t it?), and that his father, their father, was a downright _asshole_. People like that man needed to be served a good dose of justice and the cowboy _almost_ regretted not letting Hanzo do what he wanted back in that store. Still, something out of all that stuck out like a sore thumb, and Jesse knew better than to pry, but…” So, he’s loved someone before? I kinda pegged ‘im not the type, but now that ya’ told me, I’m curious.” Just talking about something else seemed to lighten him up a little bit, his jaw tight but not clenched like it had been mere moments before.

“Mm, it really does, yeah.” Genji nodded. Pretty much everything about Hanzo was explained by his childhood and teenage years. “He did, yes. They both did a good job of hiding it, but there were always those little signs.” He grinned and looked at the cowboy, eyebrows waggling. “Like the way you look at him when he’s not looking. Anyway, yes, father probably wouldn’t have minded if Haru was a _girl_ , but no… In father’s eyes, his son dating a boy bought great shame to the family. It didn’t help that Hanzo would sneak out to see him, or they’d sneak out together. He started to avoid his lessons and shirk his training. Things people tend to do when they’re in love for the first time and it’s all new and exciting. Father never even asked him to stop seeing Haru, nor did he fire Haru. He just went straight to the most extreme measure he could. After all that, I started to resent father as well, Haru was my friend as well.” He pushed off from the wall with a little sigh. “Anyway, it might be safe to check on Hanzo now.” He paused a moment, and looked back at the brunette. “Oh, Jesse? When did Hanzo change his look. I almost didn’t recognise him, hah, I never imagined he’d try something so different.”

Jesse pouted. “It’s really _that_ obvious?” Damn, he needed to work on that. One well-timed glance from Hanzo could lead to quite the problem, and he’d like to avoid that if possible. The second their father was brought back into the conversation, however, Jesse couldn’t believe his ears. “That ain’t…” good, it’s wrong. So so _wrong_. People like that were worse than the worst at the bottom of the barrel. Removing himself from the wall, the cowboy now _definitely_ believed it was better for him to just let Hanzo go if he ever saw that man again, because that bastard deserves nothing but the worst. “I dunno, guess it was in those few days he was gone.” And Jesse approved of it. Greatly. 

“Apparently just to me.” Genji grinned broadly, no one else had really picked up on it. Or, if they had, they hadn’t said anything. “I suppose, at least with father dead the world doesn’t have to deal with him anymore.” Even if it did mean Genji’s near-death at Hanzo’s hands. “Tell him I think the new look suits him, even if it’s going to take some getting used to.” Aw, even his little brother approved. 

With a catlike stretch, the cowboy tipped his hat at the green ninja, flashing a grin. “Thanks, partner. I’ll be comin’ back for some more info on yer’ brother later.” Because why not? 

“Of course, Jesse, anytime. I’ll go tell the others that everything is okay, so they can stop being worried before they get nosy.” Because certain members of the team sure as hell did that and it rarely ended up a good thing. With that, the two left Genji’s room and split off. Jesse continuing on to Hanzo’s room and the cyborg heading back into the common room.


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Have some angst.

As Jesse came to a stop outside of the archer’s door, he swore he could hear something in there but couldn’t quite put a finger on it. So, being the sticky beak he was, he leaned in and pressed his ear against the door, this time finding it a little easier to distinguish… A violin? A very intense one, at that. That had McCree’s eyebrow raise in question as he stood upright and rapped his bionic knuckles against the door. “Hanzo? Ya’ there? S’just me, yer’ favourite cowboy.”

Even if Hanzo _did_ hear that knocking, he wasn’t going to answer it. He wanted to be alone, he needed to be alone. He needed this moment.

“…” There was no answer from Hanzo, but a closed door wasn’t going to stop Jesse McCree from talking to the archer. He knocked again, then a third time, but there was no response. The cowboy contemplated trying a fourth time, but the more he listened to the music on the other side of the door, the more he began to think that maybe the older man was in his own little world right night. It’d hardly surprise him, given recent events, but the way the man always refuses to open up can’t be good.

So, he tried the doorknob and with a bit of luck, it seemed Hanzo had forgotten to lock it. Internally, the cowboy fist pumped at the small victory, whereas externally, he gave the door a little push and let it creak open on it’s own. Hanzo, a violin and the state of his room coming into view.

The normally neat-almost-to-the-point-of-obsession room was completely and utterly _trashed_ , anything breakable was in shambles on the floor. Clothing, spare bedding and personal effects were strewn everywhere and even the archer’s bed was capsized. The doors to his wardrobe was open, any drawers in the cupboards had even been torn out and hurled across the room. Hanzo stood off to one side of the room, in a small clean space surrounded by piles of stuff, a violin in his hands. It was the only thing keeping him from completely breaking down right now. 

The bow sawed angrily over the strings of the classically shaped instrument, a thick cascade of frayed haired that had already snapped from the force of his played hung from the tip of the bow and swayed two and fro with his sharp, tense movements. Growing up he’d never learned an instrument, but he’d taken lessons shortly after his fight with Genji in lieu of taking his own life. Hanzo had learned quickly and had a talent for it, but he kept it secret. As he did many things, but for him, the violin was special. It let him express himself through music, a raw expression, open and vulnerable. Hanzo didn’t even realise his bedroom door had been opened, let alone that anyone had been knocking at it. His focus was completely on the music right now. 

“Looks like a bomb went off in ‘ere,” where Jesse’s first words, and he probably could have done better than that. Now that the obstacle between them had been removed, he was able to hear the music loud and clear, but when he looked at the creator of said sounds… Hanzo looked awful.

The movement of the cowboy and his words was enough to break his focus and he stopped playing instantly, lowering the instrument quickly. TO say he looked awful was quite possibly an understatement. His hair had mostly come out of the bun and was half sticking to his head from sweat, the rest falling messily to the sides and over his face. His eyes, the strain in them blatant, stared at Jesse, he looked completely worn out, his skin was sweaty in patches and it didn’t take a close look to notice he was shaking.

Now that Jesse’s presence had been noticed, the cowboy took not having the violin hurled at his face and a lack of violent verbal abuse as a sign that it was safe to remain in here. He closed the door behind him and snipped the lock, his brow furrowing at the sight of Hanzo. He really looked quite dreadful and just the _sight_ of him was enough to wrench at his heartstrings.

“Jesse…” Hanzo finally spoke, his voice a weak, shaking desperate whisper. This break in his focus was all it took, the strain on his face quickly turned to sorrow and his eyes quickly shimmered and filled with tears. He fell to his knees on the mess of a floor, the violin and bow falling atop the mess as he lent forward, pressing his palms against his face. At first, he was quiet and mostly still until a wracking sob tore from his chest and his shoulders jerked violently as years of bottled emotions were set free.

Jesse completely froze at the unexpected change and he watched, unmoving as the archer in front of him fell to his knees. McCree had never seen the man do such a thing before, and honestly, he _never_ wanted to; because it meant Hanzo was shaken enough to _break down_ in front of someone and he knew that was no small feat. It took the sound of that sob to get his limbs working again and the second they did, Jesse had already crossed the room and dropped down to his own knees in front of the other, his hat being tossed away. “ _Shit_ , darlin’,” he muttered, his bionic arm curling around Hanzo’s lower back to yank him as close as possible while his flesh hand found itself on the back of his head, pressing his face into his shoulder. His embrace was tight, and unlike the other night, Jesse wasn’t going to let go.

There was no part of the archer that wanted to shirk away from Jesse as he came closer and as the younger man’s arms wrapped around him, he accepted it. Leaning against Jesse’s shoulder as sobs just continued to wrack his body, his arms hanging down at his sides until the one sided hug wasn’t _enough_. His arms wrapped around Jesse, shaking hands clutching tightly at the fabric of his shirt, his tears quickly wetting the man cowboy’s shoulder. How long they stayed like that was anyone’s guess and over time, Hanzo’s sobs got hoarse from the pure force and finally progressed to little hiccups. If he hadn’t looked as awful as he felt before, now was a testament to that. His hands released Jesse’s shirt and he pulled himself away from the comforting embrace, wiping his face with the back of his arm before both arms wrapped around himself tightly.

Jesse would have been completely okay with staying there longer than they had, but as Hanzo had seemingly cried himself out and pulled away, the cowboy let him go. “Ya’ feelin’ a lil’ better?” Did that even help? No, no of course it did. It had to, just being able to spill the beans like that was good. Even if Hanzo didn’t think so. With his serape and the shoulder of his shirt now damp, the cowboy slowly stood back up, giving the archer a moment to at least recover some of his dignity. It’s hardly as if he’d lost any to begin with though, since breaking down wasn’t weak. After said moment had passed though, Jesse held out his flesh hand. “C’mon Han, we’re gonna go sleep some o’ this off.” Keyword: _we’re_. There was no way McCree was going to leave Hanzo alone.

It took the older man a few minutes to reply, shaking his head. “Not really, no.” Right now he looked completely and utterly defeated, alongside the obvious exhaustion. Even when Jesse offered him a hand up, he took it and was helped to his feet. There wasn’t even any resistance when it was suggested they go get some sleep, even in his current state he knew his own bed was out of the question and he really didn’t want to be alone right now. Not after all of that. 

After helping Hanzo to his feet, Jesse led the man from his room, the archer trailing behind looking like a thoroughly kicked puppy. Genji and Lena’s heads poked out of the common room door as they went by, curious, staring at Jesse shook his head and pressed a finger to his lips. Hanzo didn’t even notice them, his gaze unfocused on the floor. They didn’t run into anyone else on the way and McCree opened his bedroom door, letting the shorter man inside first and following shortly after, closing and locking the door behind them.

“You just hop in now, I gotta take a few things off.” Namely, his holster and flash bangs. Although it seemed Hanzo was already beside his bed and he plopped down to sit on the side, emptily staring at a spot on the floor, hat still atop his head. McCree walked over to the chair he deposited everything on and did the usual thing; unhooking the grenades, then the leather holster and every odd bit of his getup that might make sleeping somewhat uncomfortable, including those boots of his because _damn_ those spurs hurt. Once he was satisfied, Jesse turned to glance at Hanzo. “Anythin’ ya’ need first?”

Shaking himself from his reverie, Hanzo slid his shirt off and shuffled down in between the covers, pulling them high over his shoulder as he faced the centre of the bed. The question had him raising his head, the hat remaining on the pillow. “Some water, please.” His voice was so hoarse and so quiet, but he really was thirsty after all of that. 

Although, by the time Jesse had returned with said glass of water, the archer was already asleep.


	21. Chapter 21

Rather than ditching the glass of water, the cowboy set it down on the bedside table carefully, his pinky cushioning it so it didn’t make too much noise. Once that had been taken care of, he circled around to the other side of the bed, lowering himself onto the mattress which dipped slightly under his weight. Taking a look over at Hanzo, Jesse heaved a quiet sigh. It’d been such a big day for the man and it’s not really a surprise he fell asleep so quickly. He was glad he chose to get the archer to sleep, after everything, he needed it. Slipping under the covers after removing his pants and popping open a few buttons of his shirt, he instantly gravitated toward the shorter man, arms sliding around him much like before, holding him close. It took little more than a few minutes for him to fall into a light version of sleep.

Unlike last time, within a few minutes of Jesse’s arms wrapping around him, Hanzo wrapped an arm around Jesse to clutch at the back of his shirt, his face pressed against the taller man’s chest. As expected, he slept for several hours, barely moving as he remained clung to Jesse. By the time he finally awoke, the storm had passed but the rain remained, steadily drumming on the roof of the compound. Jesse was still napping, but unlike the last time they woken up entangled, Hanzo didn’t freak out and push himself away. He released his grip on the brunette’s shirt and just lay there quietly. For the first time in at least twenty years, it felt _nice_ to be hugged by someone.

You heard me, Hanzo was _enjoying_ being cuddled. Laying there in silence, he played over the events in his mind from the extremely heated conversation back at the black market store. He knew he’d have to tell Genji. He also knew that the news was going to break his little brother’s heart, if not shatter it. After all, he knew Hanzo had been sent to deal with him, but to hear that it was merely a _test_?

Their father had to be stopped. He had to pay for everything he did. Sojiro Shimada had to die.

Jesse took a little longer to wake up, but that was because of the dream he was having. It had tumbleweeds, stallions, a chase, outlaws and Jesse McCree, vigilante with a damn good hat. Typical. Although, upon nearly getting himself killed by riding a horse off the edge of a cliff, the cowboy jolted awake, eyes snapping open and staring directly at- oh, right. Real life. Yeah. That exists. His gaze softened as everything flooded back into him, picking up on warm in his arms and body that had yet to shove him away. “…Ya’ awake, Hanzo?”

`Jesse’s body jerking suddenly pulled Hanzo from his thoughts quite quickly and he nodded in response. “Mm, yes I am. I have been for a short time now.” Yet, even now that the taller man was awake, he didn’t even seem to be ready to recoil. He put it down to being still so very tired, and comfortable… and above all, he felt _safe_ right now. Away from peering eyes and a barrage of questions he knew he’d have to answer at some point. “Thank you, Jesse. For this.”

“No need tah thank me. I meant what I said before, and I’m keepin’ to it.” Jesse was surprised that the archer still hadn’t tried to pull away, but he certainly didn’t bother to show it. “Yer’ water’s still over yonder,” instead of mentioning it, the cowboy gestured to the bedside table with his head, though he honestly didn’t want to let go of the man if he _did_ choose to drink it.

“My water?” He’d honestly totally and completely forgotten he’d even asked for it before he passed out. “Ah, yes, right.” Laying there for a few more moments, Hanzo finally pulled away from Jesse, grabbed the water, and went straight back. His head still ached, even now, but hopefully the water would help that pass. He took a long sip from the glass, cradling it between his palms, toying with the smooth surface with his fingers. “No one knows I play the violin, except for my teacher and now, you.” Part of him minded, but he couldn’t do anything to change that.

Jesse eased his hold on Hanzo to let him pull away, but to find said man back in his arms a moment later? He sure as hell could get used to this- provided the archer wasn’t upset while doing it. That’d just be taking advantage of him, and there was no way Jesse’d want to do that. “S’that so bad? I ain’t gonna blab,” letting go of Hanzo momentarily to stretch, McCree yawned and snuggled in rather daringly. “’Sides, yer’… pretty _passionate_ ‘bout it.” That’s certainly one way to put it.

Hanzo huffed a short, breathy laugh into the glass as he took another sip. “It is not ‘bad’, per se.” He shook his head, _allowing_ Jesse to snuggle against him, remaining quiet for a moment in contemplation. “Without it, I doubt very much I would still be alive.” Oh hey look, snuggling _and_ sharing? He really wasn’t himself right now, was he? “I started shortly after I left Hanamura, after… Genji. It was the only way I could handle the guilt and everything going on in my head. It is the reason my room is soundproofed, so I can play in private.”

Jesse needed to count his lucky stars, and make the most of right now. Listening quietly, the cowboy found himself with his nose in Hanzo’s hair, able to smell whatever it was he used to watch it with. “I’ve gotta thank that violin o’ yer’s then.” Although, honestly, it was a little dampening to hear that Hanzo had gone through those sorts of feelings. However, Jesse was a tad curious about something. “Whadaya think I’d play if I ever picked up an instrument?”

Hanzo gave his reply pretty fast, as if he’d thought about it before. “That is a simple answer, acoustic guitar. I cannot imagine you playing an electric one.” Plus, it went along well with his whole cowboy thing. The archer fell quiet again before changing the subject. “That man back in the store… that was my father. Mine and Genji’s.” Which explained why he still had assassins sent after him from time to time. “I do not know if I should tell the others or not, since it seems _he_ was the one to send assassins after me.” Which Overwatch already knew about, sort of, they’d run into several when they were out on missions. “I worry that he may send more.”

Well now, that certainly sounded appealing. Jesse might even pick it up… or not. Who knew if he even had the patience to learn. Getting onto the subject of Hanzo’s father, the cowboy’s hold tightened around the man a great deal. “I had my suspicions,” he began, “but I don’t think it’d be good to go tellin’ ‘em all the details, just’ knowin’ there are assassins are enough. If ya’ have ta’ though, tell the ape.” He’d probably be the best one to let know. “From what I heard, yer’ dad was… feignin’ ‘is death, right? An’ the shit he spat, there’s a special place in Hell for people like ‘im.”

It made sense the cowboy would have picked up on something, considering the things said, but Hanzo had to make sure Jesse was fully aware. Just in case. “Mm, I may talk to Winston later, just so he can ensure security it a bit tighter than it is now.” His grip on the half full glass a little, his head nodding once. “Yes, we were told he had a heart attack and did not make it. Even though he was… is, a terrible person, he was still our father. I assume they had a body double for him, since it was an open casket funeral.” He could still remember that day, he sighed and pushed past the memory, his voice tightening a little. “Not even two weeks after his funeral, his right-hand man came to me and informed me that in order to take my place as Head of the Clan, I was to deal with my unruly brother. If he would not come to heel and stop bringing us shame, I was to end his life.”

“N’ t’was all fer nothin’,” Jesse added on, a hint of anger present on his features. “Makes me wanna’ kill ‘im, the bastard.” Growling softly, the cowboy took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “I think Genji needs to know,” he really didn’t want to let go, but… it was true, and it needed to be soon. Although Jesse wasn’t going to tell him that, this was all on Hanzo. “He was real worried ‘bout ‘ya, but I ‘aven’t said nothin’.” He wouldn’t either, it wasn’t his place to.

“Oh, do not worry about father, Jesse.” There was some real darkness in Hanzo’s tone as he spoke. “I plan on killing him.” With or without Genji’s help, the archer’s tone lightened as he continued, just a bit. Not quite so murderous. “Yes, I agree. It would be wise to get it done with sooner rather than later.” With that he (hesitantly) pulled away from Jesse’s comforting embrace and got to his feet, hunting his his shirt which had been discarded _somewhere_ on the floor last night. “Then after,” ah, there it was, “I suppose I should set about neatening my room.”

Feeling Hanzo pull away, Jesse let him go and slowly sat up, _totally_ not enjoying the view right now. Toootally. The second the archer found the shirt he was looking for, the cowboy’s head snapped to the side to look elsewhere. “Anythin’ I can do tah’ help with all that?” Because this cowboy wanted to keep on being of use to Hanzo, or else he might feel a little bad for being unable to do _more_.

“I will let you know if I need any help. I… may do it tomorrow. We shall see.”


	22. Chapter 22

As Hanzo made his way from Jesse’s room toward the common room, he could hear both Genji and Hana exclaiming loudly, which meant they were probably playing video games. He stood in the doorway, leaning against the frame over at the two as they battled against each other. Of course they were playing games, he shouldn’t have ever had any doubts.

“Genji I need to speak with you, alone. Now.” Even though things had been less tense between them, it still existed. 

The cyborg glanced from his brother to Hana, then back. “Of course.” It was clear something was wrong. First Jesse talked to him in private and now his brother? “I’ll be right back, Hana.” Closing his bedroom door behind them, Genji decided to lock it. Just in case. “What’s wrong, anija? You somehow look more serious than normal.”

Hanzo let out a sigh and sat on the edge of his sibling’s bed, petting the spot beside him. “I need to tell you something, Genji. I know you will not like it.”

“Look, Hanzo, if it’s about Jesse, I already kn-”

He was cut off quickly. “Father is alive.” Just like that, no easing him into that news. Blunt as ever.

“-ow…” Genji finished his word, the words sinking in quickly. He looked at the older man warily, eyes narrowing in disbelief. “Hanzo. He’s _dead_. You were probably seeing things. We both saw the body.”

Hanzo shook his head. “No, I was not seeing things. It was clearly father, he spoke to me… at length. Jesse was there, he saw him too. Listen… Genji. I need to tell you this, please, will you shut up for five minutes so I can?”

The Sparrow frowned a moment, sighed and nodded. “Go ahead, I won’t interrupt until you’re done.”

Hanzo set about explaining what had happened at the store, especially telling him how it was all a _test_ and his near death had been all for naught, as well as the fact that since he left Hanamura, he’d faced assassins that were most likely sent by their father. Genji was quiet through the entire explanation, but Hanzo could see the anger in his eyes. That same anger he held toward all of this. “You know we cannot let this go, Genji. After everything, he cannot be allowed to live. I am going to go home one last time and make sure this time, he stays dead. With, or without your help.”

Genji couldn’t believe what he’d just heard, it seemed like Hanzo was making all this up… except Hanzo very rarely lied and he had no reason for it. “I… don’t know what to say.” What _could_ he say? He could feel rage burning up inside of him, the desire to help his brother was strong but… did he really want to go down that path? “Thanks, Hanzo, for telling me.” He looked away, one arm reaching out to set on his sibling’s shoulder. “I…” he took a deep breath, “give me some time to decide on this, yes?” He really needed to talk to Zenyatta and meditate. A lot. “I’ll get back to you in a few days.”

Hanzo nodded, pushing up from the bed and hesitantly accepting a hug from his younger brother before the two emerged from Genji’s room and parted ways. No doubt Genji was going to find Zenyatta and have a long talk to him about all of this. Hanzo though, he went to see how he’d left his room after everything and… oh boy. It was a mess and his inner perfectionist was _screaming_ at him to clean it up. He picked his way across the mess and took the violin and bow from where they fell when he’d finally broken and found the case, putting them away. After all, he wanted it to still remain a secret. Once it was safely tucked in the empty wardrobe, he at least started on putting some things away and setting aside things he’d ruined or broken beyond repair. Although, it didn’t take long for him to grow drowsy and his bed couldn’t be righted until the floor was clean for it. That left him with one option, which unlike the first time, seemed less horrifying. 

While Hanzo did what he needed to do, Jesse did some chores of his own; namely washing and cleaning up the clothes he’d left everywhere, keeping himself busy in the meantime. After a while, however, he ran out of things to do, so he slipped back into a pair of pants and left his room to find something to eat. He hadn’t even been back in his room for five minutes before someone was rapping at his door and he had a fair idea of who it was. Rather than voicing that they were allowed in, Jesse stood up from where he’d been sitting on his bed and opened the door, a smile crossing his face as he saw Hanzo standing there. “Yer’ ‘ere again? Can’t say I’m complainin’.” Stepping back to let him in, Jesse returned to his spot, fiddling with some sort of little doohickey. “So, how’d it go?”

Closing the door behind him, Hanzo moved to lean against the wall closest to where Jesse sat. “It went about as well as you could expect…. He was much calmer than I anticipated. I expect he has gone to talk to Zenyatta about it. I will find out in a couple of days if he wishes to accompany me or not.” 

Jesse finally set aside the little metal object in his hands, frowning when he felt a slight pinch where his bionic and flesh upper arm joined. “Maybe ya’ need tah go see ‘im sometime too, seems like he’s real good with people.” Judging by how well he helped Genji, for example. Even when he finally returned to them in his cyborg body, he was a bit salty, but now? Now the guy parades around with his face plate off and couldn’t care less.

Hanzo crossed his arms over his chest at that suggestion and he huffed. “I have done fine so far.” Except for today, but that was an anomaly. “I do not need his help.” It wasn’t that he disliked the monk, it was just… his pride and stubbornness. The archer shifted his angle of lean, making it more comfortable, his moment of annoyance at the suggestion fading. “Jesse, would you mind I stayed here again tonight? My room is going to take more time to clean than I have energy for right now.” 

“So as long as I get ta’ cuddle with ya’ this time.” The cowboy sent Hanzo a wink and stood up, because there’s no way in Hell he’s going to just lay there and do nothing after he’s finally discovered just how damn nice it is with him. He moved over toward some drawers on the opposite side of the room and started to search in them.

He should have expected that comment or at least something like it. Although, this time around he didn’t get bristly or prickly. “Perhaps.” He really didn’t mind it at this point in time, even the short sleep he’d had a few hours ago had been quite peaceful and if he could have another decent sleep like that, maybe he’d be okay tomorrow.

“Bingo,” he pulled out a small kit and headed back to his bed, looking over at the older man, grinning, “Han, I got a favour ta’ ask. Gonna need ya’ ta’ pull my arm off.”

“I always thought it was pulling ones leg.” Was that… Hanzo making a terrible joke? Yes, yes it was. “Is your arm bothering you?” Pushing off the wall, the archer strode over to Jesse.

Jesse stared quite blatantly at the raven-haired man a moment before sputtering in disbelief, all the sounds unintelligible. When he finally recovered from the mere shock of having _Hanzo_ tell a _joke_ however, he nodded. “Yup. Think there’s somethin’ stick in between it ‘n my upper arm.” The pinch was usually a sign of it, since having even the smallest grain of sand in there tended to disrupt the exposed nerves on the inside. He’d probably leave it if past experience hadn’t taught him to clean it, since the only time he’d ever neglected doing so caused temporary nerve damage _and_ left him with the shake for a week when the prosthetic was set back into place. Let’s just say that it _wasn’t pleasant._

That reaction to Hanzo’s awful joke bought a somewhat pleased-with-himself look to his face as he he moved over to stand near Jesse by the bed. Apparently he was feeling a lot less tense at the moment. “That sounds like it could indeed be problematic.”

The cowboy could easily clean it himself though, there was no need for Hanzo’s help, but to Hell with doing it alone. He had the chance to have Hanzo’s hands on a part of him and he was going take it. Eagerly. “Now I’m gonna need ya’ ta’ hold my arm real tight for me, but don’t pull it till I say so.” Or else he’d probably end up in a bit of pain. Although first, he opened up the kit and took out a small screwdriver and lifted his arm for Hanzo to take. One he felt firm hands gripping it, Jesse couldn’t help a stupid grin as he made short work of the barely noticeable plating that covered the disconnection switch. He set the plating and screwdriver aside and pressed the very small button that was now exposed. His arm jolted before it suddenly went limp. “There, now ya’ can pull. Jus’ do it gently.”

He really hadn’t had a lot to do with bionics so when it went limp, the extra weight caught him off-guard. On Jesse’s mark, he gently tugged it and with a moment of resistance, it slid from the docking port and seemed to gain more weight to it. That was unexpected.

Jesse winced, less out of pain and more of a response to ‘oh shit my arm just came off’. At least, that was generally what his brain was telling him, given the loss of so much weight. “Now, don’t go droppin’ that.” He doubted Hanzo would, even if the armoured arm was quite weighty. 

“I was not intending to do that, it may break my toes with all of the weight it has.” The archer sat on the edge of the bed, the arm across his lap, quite curious, paying attention to the information given.

So, while his arm was in Hanzo’s hands (literally), Jesse plucked a bottle of some sort of spray and squired a generous amount straight into the port. “Gotta numb it ‘fore I stick anythin’ in there.” He offered up a short chuckle, taking out a cotton swab from the packet next. Carefully, he pushed it into the port, frowning at the discomfort it brought with it and rubbed it around in an attempt to find- another pinch. Bingo. Jesse focused on one little area and eventually pulled the swab back out with what looked like a very small bit of debris stuck to the tip. Well, that’d explain it.

 

“That seems wise. Does it hurt when the arm disconnects?” He’d noticed the look on the cowboy’s face when the arm had disconnected. While Jesse searched for the cause of the issue, Hanzo took a closer look at the arm in his lap, specifically the end that joined it to the rest of Jesse’s body. Modern technology wasn’t a huge part of his life, he didn’t even own a phone. The idea that he could be bothered at any time, bothered him greatly. “How often do things like this happen?”

Jesse shook his head, moving over to the nearest hard surface to set the swab on before returning to the kit and fishing through it again. “Nah, jus’ a lil’ uncomfortable. Ya’ tend tah get that when yer’ pullin’ yer’ arm off. Hurt when I first got it though, took a while ‘fore I got used ta’ it.” Even now it could be a bit surreal, being able to take half his arm off just like that, with no real effort involved. Plucking out another bottle of spray and a cloth, McCree squirted that one in there too. “An’ this is the disinfectant. Gotta say, I don’ like it bein’ exposed though. Could be a real hassle if someone figured out ta’ take it off.” With the cloth in hand, he sprayed some of the disinfectant on that as well, rubbing it around the port, just in case. “Often enough, but it ain’t usually a problem, ‘less I neglect cleanin’ it.” Stepping over to the archer, the cowboy did a quick wipe of the connecting area as well before tossing the cloth onto the bed beside the other bottles. “A’ight darlin’, now I just need ya’ ta’ slide it back in.” Jesse waggled his eyebrows rather suggestively at his own words.

It was strange enough for Hanzo to have helped a man _take his arm off_ , let alone being on the other end of it. “I can imagine it would have taken quite some time to adjust to it.” Hanzo wasn’t really sure how well he’d cope if he needed a bionic limb. His balance would be thrown off no doubt. At that suggestive tone and those damn waggling eyebrows, Hanzo’s features tightened and he frowned, his cheeks colouring just a little. Heaving a loud huff, he lifted the arm and carefully slid it back into place.

When the connectors were slid back into place, Jesse pressed the little button again, sending a surge shooting up his arm and causing him to frown momentarily once again. Reconnecting it wasn’t much better, that’s for sure. Taking a moment to wriggle all his fingers and twist his wrist, he did a few tests to make sure he could feel as much as the limb allowed him. Every checkup passed and satisfied, he returned the plating to it’s place, screwing it down tightly and double checking his ability to move his arm. “Seems all good now. Thanks for tha’ help, Han.” Shooting him a wink this time, the cowboy admittedly being a little daring. Although, it was mostly because of that rosy colour that barely tinted the other’s cheeks. It was cute as heck. “Now, shall we get some sleep then?”

Hanzo, for some reason, had expected more of a frown when the arm reconnected. He wasn’t sure why, but that didn’t matter. At least it seemed to be all fine once again. “It is fine.” He didn’t even do much, but that wink caused his blush to darken and he tried to hide it by moving to clear the bed, putting things back in the kit. Once that annoying blush was gone, he looked back at Jesse with a nod. “Mm, yes. Sleep sounds like a perfect idea.”


	23. Chapter 23

Sometime during the night, Hanzo must have gotten far too warm and somehow managed to kick off his pants (and his underpants). Now, he was snuggled back against Jesse’s front, the little spoon against the bigger, cowboy shaped spoon. One of the brunette’s arms was around his midsection, their hands entwined together lightly. In the early hours of the morning, the archer finally slipped into a deep enough sleep to start to dream and… oh boy, _what a dream_. He murmured unintelligibly in his sleep, wriggling around a little, pressing his body back against the taller man’s. Soft little sighs slipped from his lips that turned to soft breaths and those to _moans_. Sounds that most people who knew him assumed he would ever make. Ever.

Jesse was still asleep as well and didn’t notice anything going on until he was stirred by something wriggling about as well as some rather odd sounds. At first they weren’t enough to wake him up, but after a while it _was_ enough for him to crack his eyes open, brain muddled and still over half asleep. That is, until he heard the _moaning_. That was was _really_ bought him back into the world of the living, his consciousness returning to him and his eyes fluttering open to peer through the darkness at the barely visible figure pressing against his chest. “…Han?” Whispering quietly, the cowboy first thought that there was something wrong but no, there was no mistaking it when another one of those shiver-inducing moans slipped from the archer mid-sleep. It had Jesse freezing solid, eyes widening to a rather alarming degree. He didn’t hear right, did he? No, no. He’s still asleep, he’s just dreaming all this up. There’s no way that was actually Hanzo. Apparently, his terrible attempt to convince himself worked and just for a moment, he relaxed and closed his eyes… only for them to snap open again at another of those sounds. _Holy shit._

Of course, if Hanzo had known exactly what he was doing in his sleep, he’d have gone into hiding out of pure and utter embarrassment but he had no idea about it. At all. Although, this wasn’t the first time he’d had dreams like this, except those times he was alone in his own bed. Of course, he hadn’t breathed a word of it to anyone, not Jesse and especially not Genji. The last thing he needed was people knowing what kind of dreams Hanzo had been having of late and that plan… was failing. Silly happily stuck in dreamland, Hanzo’s body continued to writhe back against McCree’s, those moans and groans continuing. “Mm… Jesse…” The hand that was laced with the cowboy’s moved, pushing the brunette’s hand down along his body. It seemed Jesse wasn’t the only thing that was stiff.

‘ _Oh my God_ ’was McCree’s exact thought process right about now. Hanzo’s writhing and moaning and groaning stirring something that he does _not_ want to be stirred, because it’s going to make the situation _much worse_. So, closing his eyes, Jesse tried rather desperately to think about dead puppies. It didn’t work. Not when the heat was steadily building in his lower regions, and _definitely_ not when he heard his name. Taking a sharp breath, Jesse felt his hand being pushed downward and only then did he realise the archer was completely naked. That only surged his arousal, gulping and unable to bear it anymore. “Hanzo? ‘Ey, Han.” Rather than letting it get too far, the cowboy chose the responsible route, despite how much he may or may not have been enjoying all this. He tugged his hand away from the Shimada’s hold and gave him a gentle shake. “Hanzo, wake up.”

The archer’s dream was interrupted as Jesse shook him awake gently, calling his name. In his half-awake fog, he didn’t quite realise the state he was in. Well, both states. He yawned and stretched, tipping his head to look back at Jesse in the darkness. “What is it Jesse? Wh-” He didn’t get to finish that sentence, his fog cleared enough for him to realise both states he was in right now. Naked and aroused. With Jesse right behind him.

Apparently McCree didn’t need to say anything, because Hanzo had seemingly already picked up on the state he was in. He was, however, a little thankful that the man hadn’t noticed his own state, despite the fact that he was quite literally pressed up against the archer _and_ excited to boot. Pulling away from him, Jesse sat up and combed fingers through his hair rather awkwardly, offering up a soft chuckle to help dispel any tension that had grown immensely in barely any time at all. “Sounded like ya’ were havin’ fun,” he started, finding his choice of words to be a bit… well, yeah. “I, err, dunno when yer’ clothes came off. Jus’ woke up n’ they were gone.”

Oh, Hanzo had noticed Jesse pressing up against him. It was rather hard to miss. As the cowboy pulled away, Hanzo just… yep, he just stayed right there. Unmoving. Wide-eyed and blushing stupidly bright in the dark room. He was glad it was still dark enough for Jesse to not be able to see his face that was somehow not lighting up the room with a red glow. Considering Jesse’s words, Hanzo realised that he must have been doing more than sleeping while he was dreaming. He hadn’t spoken yet, his brain wasn’t letting him due to the fact he felt stupidly embarrassed on top of _other_ things.

Finally, after a long silence. A long, _awkward_ silence he managed to compose himself enough to speak. “I… must have become too warm in my sleep.” The words were stammered out, his composure hadn’t lasted long. Sure, it wasn’t the first time he’d kicked his pants off in his sleep, but he assumed Jesse was a warm sleeper since it wasn’t warm weather. So now, here he was. Naked. In bed with the one one man who he had _somehow_ managed to grow feelings for and they were both aroused.

That silence was deafening, Jesse _really_ wasn’t sure how Hanzo was going to take it. Sure, he expected the man to burst into a fit of rage and storm off, but he’d been surprising the cowboy right and left for a while now, so he didn’t know _what_ to expect. When Hanzo finally spoke, he nodded. “Yeah, probably.” In comparison to the archer, Jesse was dressed in nothing else than a barely done up shirt and tumbleweed printed boxers. Don’t ask about the underwear. With an awkward scratch at the back of his neck, Jesse went quiet again, painfully aware of the elephant in the room. There was no way they could just brush something like that off. “So, err…” And thus the cowboy attempted to address it. “I heard ya’ sayin’ my name, am I right ta’ assume that it was… me in that dream?” By asking the most embarrassing question possible for Hanzo to answer. Well, then again, he could ask for exact details and that would be worse.

There was a very sudden, loud sharp inhalation of air from Hanzo. He’d been _talking in his sleep _, at at least… vocalising his dream. If the earth opened up and swallowed him right now, he’d be completely and utterly okay with that. It was way more preferable to this current situation. But, Hanzo being Hanzo, he couldn’t really lie. Especially after what Jesse had heard and… felt. The painful silence returned and the older man swallowed heavily, taking a long, deep breath before responding; rather than getting angry and defensive before storming out. His face was burning hot by now, that blush had most likely spread to his neck as well. “Yes.”__

__Jesse was going to pinch himself at this rate, because this was way too unbelievable. “Lemme get this straight. I’m assumin’ that yer’ hard ‘cus of me in that dream, ‘n now I am too.” Now, where-oh-where was the cowboy leading with his words? Jesse paused, taking his time to even himself out, swallowing down an annoying lump in his throat. He couldn’t deny being nervous. “Which means we’re both turned on,” in the same room to boot (and in the same bed), “so, I was just thinkin’… why don’t we, erm, do somethin’ about that?” Not bothering to say anything else just yet, the cowboy let his words sink in, shifting in his spot on the mattress before opening his mouth to add to that. “I mean, you don’t hafta’, but I’d be down for it since I do like ya,” okay, a lot. He liked him a lot and Genji was right on target with that._ _

__Did Jesse really just… yes, of course he did. He was exactly the type to be so upfront and forward about almost everything. Hanzo had still barely moved from where he laid and that blush was still firmly affixed to his face. He knew he liked Jesse, hell, he’d confided in him and that didn’t come easy but now… he was offering something the archer had literally dreamed of a handful of times. He’d tried to fight those feelings, trying to push them down and away like he did with almost everything else he wasn’t willing to deal with. Though, right now, he’d finally had enough of fighting himself. It was exhausting. Finally, he moved from where he’d been all but frozen and rolled over to face the gunslinger, his stomach suddenly filled with butterflies that were twisting in knots. Dammit, he really felt like he was a teenager again, Taking a deep breath to settle himself, he exhaled slowly. “Maybe… maybe we should.”_ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's happening next chapter for sure, this one was longer than I expected.


	24. Chapter 24

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

_Oh _. Now, that was.. not the answer he was expecting. Jesse didn't reply until after he'd pinched himself on the back of his hand, proving that this was all completely real and he wasn't dreaming like Hanzo had been just now. Adjusting himself so that he was now on his side and facing the archer, Jesse reached for the man's face rather blindly with his flesh hand, coming into contact with what he was fairly certain was Hanzo's cheek. To think he'd be able to touch him like this. "Then let's start slow," purring, the cowboy's tone dropped a few notches as he scooched closer, a surge of confidence finally winning him over. If there's one thing he's good at that didn't involve guns, it's this. Jesse brought himself close enough that the other could probably feel his warm breath, only to press their lips together in a gentle manner, not wanting to jump right in because _hell_ he wanted to make the first kiss they share last as long as possible.__

__As Jesse's hand cupped his cheek, he no doubt felt the warmth that burned from the blush that was finally starting to fade, albeit slowly. That tone in the cowboy's words had it flare up momentarily, but thankfully his face was cooling down. The taller man shuffled closer to him and closed the gap between their mouths. Twenty years. Twenty damn years since he'd felt _anything_ like this for anyone and it felt good. He'd convinced himself he didn't _need_ this, that all it led to was pain and heartache, but apparently one annoying cowboy was reminding him that he _did_ need this. He barely even hesitated to respond to the gentle kiss, the action awkward on his end for a short time, he really was so out of practice. Pressing himself closer against Jesse, the archer slid an arm around him to rest his hand on the gunslinger's back._ _

__That annoying cowboy was _immensely_ proud when he got a proper response to the kiss. So, without further ado, Jesse really got into it, not at all minding the arm around him. Brushing his thumb over Hanzo's cheekbone, his hand slowly drifted back to the back of his head, lightly pushing him forward to deepen their little smooch. Picking up the pace a little with his lips' movements however, there was no way it was going to stay gentle and sweet for long. A tongue swiped at Hanzo's bottom lip as Jesse added a little bit of passion into the mix._ _

__As the kiss was deepened (although he really could probably put up with the sweet and gentle kiss for a whole lot longer), Hanzo moved his hand to mirror Jesse's, sliding up his back to rest on the back of the brunette's head. He nipped lightly at Jesse's lips, his fingers tangling themselves into the brown mop of hair atop the man's head._ _

__Was this as good as Jesse imagined it to be? Nope, it was even better than that. Jesse propped himself up so that he was a little higher than Hanzo, eventually sliding over the top of him so that he could use both arms, settling on his knees with the archer's legs between them. Switching the flesh hand behind the ninja's head with his metal one, he somehow kept their kiss intact despite all the movement. But unfortunately oxygen existed and the both of them needed that. He broke it off for a split second, inhaling deeply and remaining within inches before bringing their lips back together, hand going for a walkabout along Hanzo's side, exploring the muscle there._ _

__As Jesse propped himself higher and started to slide over him, Hanzo rolled from his side onto his back, making sure to help keep that kiss of theirs going. How had he let himself miss out on this for all this time? As the kiss was broken, he allowed a smile to grace his lips before their lips crushed together once again. His other arm raised up from the mattress, settling on Jesse's upper back, his fingers pressing firmly into the muscles._ _

__When he felt like they'd done enough kissing for now, the cowboy broke it off again and brushed his lips along Hanzo's jawline, trailing upwards to his ear. "So darlin', whaddaya want me to do?" Purring much like he had before, voice thick with arousal, Jesse's hand continued to explore and fingers continued to trace, finding itself now on his abdomen while he nipped at Hanzo's earlobe. That wasn't all, though. Completely out of the blue, the cowboy ground himself and his member down against the ninja's erection with a low moan, shivering in pleasure at the friction it created._ _

__Hanzo's head tilted to the side as Jesse's teeth nipped at his earlobe, not gracing the man with an answer just yet because anything he did right now seemed to be exactly what the archer wanted. The unexpected frottage elicited a quiet moan from him, a wave of pleasure shivering though his form, his cheeks flushing lightly. Damn his constant embarrassment right now, but his lack of experience had really put a dampener on his confidence. Plus, Jesse just had to ask him, he couldn't have just… done whatever. "Just… keep doing what you are doing." Because right now, there was no way in Hell he'd voice it._ _

__"Just keep doin' this? If that's what ya' want, darlin'," unfortunately for Hanzo, Jesse _fully_ intended to tease. Removing his bionic hand from behind the man's head, the cowboy left his earlobe alone and trailed little kisses down his exposed neck, while that prosthetic hand dragged down Hanzo's body at a painfully slow rate and the flesh counterpart settled on his hip. Bringing himself down once more to grind against him, Jesse's hand finally reached the area directly above his arousal, only to retract it entirely and instead re position it on Hanzo's upper chest, finger briefly nudging his right pink bud._ _

__No that wasn't what he meant… no. Jesse why? Of course, he probably should have expected something like this. Really. As that hand hovered close, only to move away and creep up his torso, a little frown formed on the archer's lips. "You know that was not what I meant." Not that the attention was _bad_ per se, just… frustrating when he was already so worked up. _ _

__"Nah I don't, darlin'. Ya' told me tah do what I was doin', so I am." Jesse was grinning from ear to ear, finding this ridiculously amusing as his hand slid back down again, this time remaining still that very same place. "Go on, ya' gotta say it or I ain't doin' nothin' else."_ _

__Hanzo's frown turned into a scowl, there was none of his usual venom behind it… it was more of a stubborn scowl. "Why do you do this to me?" It was already hard enough for him to admit he wanted to do this thing. "Fine." He huffed and wrapped his arms around the cowboy's neck, pulling Jesse's ear to his mouth, his voice lowering a few octaves and taking on a purr. "I want you to fuck me, Jeese."_ _


	25. Chapter 25

Allowing Hanzo to pull him close, those words and that purr directed into his ear had Jesse inhaling sharply, face heating up. It wasn't embarrassing, but to hear that from the archer… Well, quite frankly, it was downright _sexy_. "You got it, darlin'." Letting off a purr of his own, the cowboy's hand _finally_ took it a step further and wrapped around him tightly, stroking and purring further still. "Though, I'm gonna need tah know now, ya' done this before, right?"

Hanzo breathed a sigh of relief as _finally_ , Jesse stopped teasing him. The skin to skin contact sending a shiver through his body. He'd almost forgotten how this felt, when it wasn't his _own_ hand. "A few times, yes." He nodded, his eyes half closing from the pleasure. "But it has been a long time… so just be gentle."

That was… _surprising_ , but he said it had been a long time, so that meant that he'd done this stuff when he was younger? Must not have been so strict about personal space back then. "Dunno if I can do gentle darlin'," tacking on a chuckle, Jesse lowered his lips to the archer's neck, latching on and nipping to purposely make some marks. "Mind helpin' me outta my clothes?"

Memories from his teen years tried to flood back, but thankfully, he was completely and utterly distracted from himself that they were easily pushed away. Hanzo didn't even bother protesting Jesse's words, because part of him didn't really care. As Jesse's teeth nibbled at his neck, the archer's hands moved to undo and push the shirt off the gunslinger's torso. His hands skimmed over Jesse's now exposed torso down to push the cowboy's pants down as far as he could.

Humming delightfully at the loss of his own clothing, Jesse crawled off the bed to stand up, pants pooling at his feet since they hadn't been entirely removed. "Just a sec." Kicking them off, he shuffled on over to the bedside table and withdrew a bottle of lube from one of the drawers, then clambered back on top of Hanzo. Only to ease himself downward. Spreading the archer's legs once he was situated further down and between his thighs, Jesse popped the lid open with his thumb, squirted some of the lube onto his fingers, and got to work spreading it over his entrance. As he did so, the cowboy rather lovingly peppered kisses along his inner thighs, each one closer and closer to Hanzo's length. When he was almost on top of it, Jesse pushed a finger into him slowly, tongue also being dragged up the underside at the same time with a cheeky grin on his lips.

The archer's gaze remained on Jesse as he moved to the bedside table and back, shifting to prop himself up on his elbows, because hey, why not enjoy the view while he was at it? Although, his cheeks burned slightly as Jesse kissed his skin and again he was glad it was dark enough to hide the blush that was apparently a permanent fixture on his face right now. Although the blush was quickly forgotten as one slicked digit slid inside him and the cowboy's tongue dragged along his length. Oh boy. Long forgotten sensations caused him to shiver in pleasure and a little breath of pleasure slipped from his lips.

 _God_ , Jesse regretted not switching a light on. It would've been a wonderful sight he's sure, to see Hanzo's reaction to what he was doing. But alas, it was a little late for that now. Focusing on the task at hand, the cowboy carefully eased a second slicked finger in, beginning to pump them at a slow rate. His tongue on the other hand was removed just for a moment, taking hold of him with his free hand (prosthetic at that) and then returning. Well, by returning, he means his entire mouth. On Hanzo's cock. Sliding it into his mouth without even hesitating, Jesse took it down to his throat, held the position, and then pulled off, only to do it again.

As that second finger slid inside him, Hanzo let himself fall back with a low moan and one arm draped over his eyes. Although that arm dropped to his mouth and muffled a somewhat louder, shuddering groan that also sounded a lot like Jesse's name. It wasn't long after that though and Hanzo's spare hand moved to rest atop the messy brown mop of hair atop the gunslinger's head.

It was unfortunate he muffled that groan, because Jesse would've _definitely_ gotten off to it. Twisting his tongue around Hanzo's length and pumping his fingers in faster, the cowboy couldn't help but grin up at him, as if the male could even see it. But, of course, this wasn't going to last that long. After adding a third and pumping that one in as well, he pulled off his shaft with a soft pop, slipping his fingers back out and sat up. Reaching for the lube again, he flicked the cap open, squirted some more into his hand, and then worked the stuff on his own shaft. "Gonna need ya' ta turn over n' get on yer' hands 'n knees, sweetheart. 'Less ya' wanna' face me while I make yer' world rock." There's never not a good time to be a complete flirt, is there? Though.. nobody ever said that their position would _stay_ that way, because Jesse fully intended to fuck him in as many ways as possible tonight.

No doubt he'd hear a whole lot more of those sounds soon enough and as a third finger slipped inside him, his back arched up off the bed slightly and his fingers tangled in Jesse's hair a little. As the attention stopped, the archer raised his head and toyed with the brown locks lightly. He scoffed a little breathy laugh as Jesse managed to be oh-so-cheesy effortlessly. "There is nothing stopping us from changing later." Shifting from where he lay, Hanzo got up onto his hands and knees. 

More ideas than the ones he'd already pictured in his head popped in the very moment Hanzo mentioned changing. "That's definitely gonna happen now, darlin'. Hope yer' ready." He better fucking be, 'cus the cowboy's having second thoughts on going nice and easy. Allowing the man some time to do as he'd asked, Jesse's eyes skimmed over the expanse of Hanzo's back- or at least, what he could see. Which wasn't much. With a few hasty jerks of his member, the cowboy adjusted himself so that he was situated directly behind the archer's rear end and gripped his hip with a metal hand. Steadying himself, Jesse guided the tip to Hanzo's entrance, rubbing around and then just pressing against it, all in order to be a tease despite his own quickly growing impatience. Rather than actually slipping in, the cowboy bent over him, lips now brushing against the back of his neck with a low chuckle. "Yanno, 'm startin' ta' think that maybe I should go n' turn a light on." It was mostly just to see what Hanzo's reaction would be to the implication of a delay, but hell. If he actually agreed then Jesse won't complain.

At that question the archer half scoffed, what kind of question was that anyway? "Of course I am ready, Jesse." At least that initial embarrassment had finally decided to leave him alone, mostly because really, he hadn't been this aroused for a very long time. Stupid, sexy cowboy. He moved a little to make sure he was steady and comfortable, his breath hitching in anticipation as that hand settled on his hip Although, that teasing and Jesse's lips brushing over his back had that anticipation fizzling away into the smallest flash of annoyance. Really? "Do whatever it is you want, Jesse. Just, do not take too long.”


	26. Chapter 26

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just like in The Lies We're Told, there was too much of a break between starting and trying to continue the smut. Sorry for that, but you'll get more later. Don't fret!

In the end, the lights had remained off and now the two lay entangled on Jesse’s bed, sheets tangled around Hanzo’s legs. They were both quiet, Jesse’s hand trailing through the archer’s raven locks as the older man over-thought what had just happened between them. He was sticky and sweaty, but the cowboy had tired him out and moving right now wasn’t an option. 

“Han?” Jesse’s questioning voice broke the silence, his hand still stroking the silky locks atop the archer’s head, “are you okay, darlin’?”

“I am fine,” he replied after a few moments, almost too relaxed to reply, “this is just nice,” the older man chuckled ever-so-slightly, “and you wore me out. Do not worry, Jesse.”

“I wore _you_ out? Tch, darlin’ ya’ did the same ta’ me.” The cowboy grinned, pressing his lips to Hanzo’s forehead. He still couldn’t believe that had even happened and he knew he was awake, the Shimada’s nails clawing at his back had really made sure of that. 

Hanzo shifted a little, moving himself just a little closer to Jesse, not that there was much room between them right now. His head now rested on the cowboy’s chest, laying against his side. “If Genji does not wish to come to Hanamura with me…” he trailed off a moment, “would you like to come along? I do not think going alone would be wise.”

“Course I would.” His arm slid around the shorter man’s shoulders. “I wouldn’t let ya’ go alone anyway, it ain’t safe. An’ I know ya’ can take care of yerself, but I doubt yer’ dad’ll let ya jus’ walk on in.”

“He will not stop me.” Hanzo was determined but also sleepy, so his determined tone wasn’t as effective as normal. “I will,” he yawned softly, his words becoming slurred and unintelligible, “fight my way in if it…” Yep, he didn’t even finish that sentence. His form relaxed against Jesse as his breathing evened out, the fingers toying with his hair helping send him into dreamland. Jesse followed shortly after, the silence and peace mixing with his own exhaustion.

Even by the time Hanzo awoke several hours later, his lack of energy leaving him sleeping past dawn once again. The two hadn’t even moved and he allowed himself to lay there for a few minutes more, although he soon got restless and carefully he untangled himself from the lightly snoring cowboy (and the sheets). Slipping his clothing on, the archer slipped from the bedroom with barely a sound and went down to shower. The dried sweat on his skin was awful and he took his time to clean himself, currently unaware of the bruises and bite marks that stood out from his skin. 

Turning off the water, he stepped out and toweled himself off. For now, he put the clothing back on he had before and left the communal shower, heading back down to his room. He pushed through the door and cringed, ugh, it was still a mess. Although, he’d deal with it later. After a morning work out and after breakfast, even though his mind was still everywhere. Perhaps some exercise would help, plus it had been at least a week since he’d done anything aside from well, the _work out_ with Jesse early this morning. He felt his cheeks colour as he recalled that and hastily, he moved to find some clean clothing to put on. For now, just some comfortable pants and a loose shirt. 

Since his room was a mess, he couldn’t do that in here so… outside it was. The fresh air would again be welcome and there was more room outside, so he could really push himself today, see how well his knee was recovering. Leaving his room, he slipped out the side door and found a spot on the soft lawn, wriggling his toes against it. Everything felt better out here, it was going to take him a while yet to fully be comfortable inside for long periods of time. Raising his arms over his head, he took his time to warm up, stretching this way and that. His muscles were still a bit sore and stiff in places, or was that a side effect from this morning? Either way, he’d have to take it easy apparently. 

Back in the bedroom, Jesse had shuffled over to the warm, empty spot where Hanzo had been, in search of his human shaped hot water bottle in a half asleep state. Mumbling and dragging his fingers through his awfully messy hair, the gunslinger opened his eyes and frowned when he realised that yes, Hanzo was gone. With a whine of complaint that no one but himself would hear, the cowboy slowly hauled himself out of bed and yawned. He shouldn’t be surprised, since the archer usually got up before him, but still… 

Throwing some pants on and nothing more, Jesse took his turn to go down to the showers, humming to himself some ditty as he cleaned himself off. He was in a good mood today, well, he would be once the morning fog would clear from his mind. Coffee would help with that, black coffee with a bunch of sugar. As always, he took a long shower. Long and hot, he was often the cause of the hot water running out quickly around here. The water stung some of the deeper scratches on his back and he winced ever-so-slightly, that had been something unexpected but wholly welcome. Jesse wasn’t aware Hanzo had that in him and it was definitely something he wanted to experience again, if the archer wanted to. He hoped that he did, since he said he’d enjoyed it, but he really still wasn’t in his right mindset after everything so… who knew?

Wrapping his towel around his waist and tucking the corner to secure it, he happily strolled back to his bedroom and threw on some clothes. He’d tidy a bit later, right now he needed coffee. The blacker the better. He pushed his wet hair back in an attempt to look sort of neat once he’d tugged his serape over his shoulder, with another yawn he left his bedroom and made his way to the kitchen. It was empty at the moment and he shuffled over to the coffee machine, sliding a mug into place and punching in his order. 

Even the scent of the brew as it poured into the cup seemed to help clear the fog from his mind, the shower hadn’t, the warmth had just made him more lethargic. With the mug full, he took it with his flesh hand, movement catching his eye outside the large window. Moving over to investigate, the sight before him woke him up pretty damn fast. Hanzo was in sight, doing what Jesse assumed was yoga on the lawn. He couldn’t help but stare as the man arched and twisted his body, he had no idea how flexible and limber the archer was. The mug was frozen halfway to his lips and he just couldn’t look away, damn. Although his distraction didn’t last much longer.

“Hey, kid.”


	27. Chapter 27

Jesse knew that voice and it shocked him to his core. He froze instantly, his mind spinning. He was awake right? He hadn’t somehow gone back to sleep without even realising it, had he? He pinched himself on the cheek, a little too hard and he made him yelp. Okay so he was awake. Which meant this was real.

“What the _fuck_?” He unfroze and he found his hands trembling, the sight of Hanzo doing yoga no longer holding his attention. Turning his gaze to the speaker, Jesse felt the blood drain from his face.

There stood the man who yanked him from Deadlock and had all but raised him from an angry, rough, violent, teenage gang brat to the man he’d become today. Gabriel fucking Reyes. He stared at those all too familiar features, a face he’d not seen in ten years outside of photographs. “What. The. Fuck?” 

Gabriel hadn’t even responded yet, although, he seemed to become more alert now and an awkward look crossed his face, one hand rubbing the back of his neck. The second thing Jesse realised, other than it was Gabe, was the fact the man was wearing one of _Jack’s shirts_. What the hell was even going on? “An’ why’re ya’ wearin’ Jack’s stu-…” 

Wait. It clicked in his mind and emotions boiled up inside him quickly, rage and sorrow, his eyes shimmered with tears. “You. And Jack. An’ you weren’t really dead an’…” His mouth curled into a frown, his hands balling into fists and his voice raising in volume. “Where th’ _hell_ ‘ave you been all this time?! We all thought ya’ were _dead_ , Gabe! ‘Ave ya’ been sleepin’ with Jack all this time behind our backs?! On some kinda holiday?”

Gabe’s hands raised quickly in self defense. “Jesse, I-”

“Hey Je- shit.” Jack had walked in and Jesse’s head snapped to face him, his face flushed with rage.

“And you!” The cowboy jabbed a bionic finger towards the white haired soldier. “You! You never told me!? You’ve been… fucking Gabe all this time and letting me… us, think he died?!”

“No, Jesse. No. Stop.” Jack groaned, rubbing his face as accusations were hurled at him. “It’s not like that, at all. You’re dramatising. Look, I didn’t know he was alive all this time either. Not until about a week ago. I didn’t tell you because well, I was still getting over the shock myself.” 

Jesse’s eyes narrowed at those words and he looked from one to the other. Both of them had multiple, visible, fresh love bites on their necks. He knew it, he fucking knew it. “So, wait. Wait. Lemme get this straight. You didn’t know ‘e was alive an’ within a _week_ of knowin’, ya’ slept together?”

“Jessie, we were dating _before_ Zurich. Hell, we were dating before Blackwatch was formed. We just weren’t really obvious about it, but it’s not like it was a secret.” Jack replied with a low laugh.

“Well, shit.” The gunslinger fell quiet for a few moments, raising his gaze again, he hadn’t even realised that back in the day. His anger faded. “So, if ya’ ain’t been dead,” he still couldn’t believe it, “where the hell ya’ been all this time?”

Jack spoke up first. “That’s something we’ll have to discuss later, it’s complicated. Just give us some time, Jesse. We’re aware you’ve got lots of questions, but he’ll be around more. So you two can catch up at some point.” 

What the hell kinda of lame-ass explanation was that? Jesse’s eyes narrowed just a little at the pair, he would prefer to know now, but it seemed he had no choice but to wait.

“And do me a favour, kid. Don’t go blabbing about it, not yet. I’m kinda not ready to deal with all of that just yet.” Gabriel followed up before Jesse could say anything. “I’m sorry, really. I didn’t mean for this to happen, guess I was still thinking it was back before… everything.” 

“Yeah, well…” Jesse half scowled, rubbing the back of his neck again before letting his flesh arm fall to his side. “It better be a good reason, else I’m kickin’ yer’ arse.” With that, he basically threw himself at Gabriel and embraced him tightly. “Don’t ya’ ever do that shit again, asshole. I missed you.”

Gabe hesitated, presumably caught off guard, but he returned the hug with a half laugh. “It’s not like I did it on purpose, Jesse. I’m just still trying to figure out what happened myself. Once I figure it all out, we’ll have a bit talk, okay? And yeah, I missed you too.”

The cowboy pulled back after a few more drawn out moments and wiped his eyes with the back of his flesh hand. Life really was throwing all sorts of surprises at him lately. “Guess I don’ need coffee ta’ wake me up this mornin’.” It was a weak attempt at a joke, what was with this week and people coming back from the dead? First Hanzo’s father and now well, the man who he saw as a father. “I’m jus’… gonna take my drink an’ go process all this.” Maybe add some whiskey to his morning beverage to assist with that.

Leaving the kitchen, he almost ran smack bang into Hanzo who had apparently come back inside. The archer had been distracted as well, looking at the dark skinned stranger. “Jesse, who is-” 

“Jus’, come with me.” The cowboy grabbed Hanzo’s arm and led him back to his bedroom, sitting down on the bed with a heavy, drawn out sigh. He probably should explain, but for now, his coffee was very interesting and he stared at the surface.

“Jesse?” Hanzo asked gently, concern clear in hie words as he took a seat beside the cowboy. “What is it? What is wrong?”

The younger man was quiet for a few long moments before he tore his gaze away from his coffee and raised his head, meeting that worried gaze. “Guessin’ it’s time I told ya’ a story, Han.”


End file.
